Enjoy the latest Wag newsletter
Our Summer Wag newsletter is here, and it’s full of lovely stories from across our fantastic community. Inside, you can read about Kaz and Finn visiting Mrs B near Morpeth, meet volunteer Ria with Friendship Dog Oskar, and watch the moving short film of our friend Mrs Sheila W in Newcastle, who explains just how…
Wag awarded Mayor’s Opportunity Fund Grant
We are very grateful to have been awarded a grant of £9,620 by the Mayor’s Opportunity Fund. This will enable us to recruit and support 20 befriending Wag Teams matched to regularly visit 20 older dog lovers (65+) feeling isolated or alone in their own homes in rural and deprived areas of Northumberland and Tyne…
WATCH: You’re never alone when you’ve got a dog
In May, film-maker Morgan Stephenson volunteered to interview our dear friend Mrs Sheila W in her own home in Newcastle. Sheila wanted to tell everyone how important Wag’s special befrienders are for people like her who miss their pets and can’t have them anymore. As Sheila says: “You can be lonely in a crowded room,…
Volunteer profile: Ria and Friendship Dog Oskar
After losing her beloved dog Jasper in 2021, Ria welcomed Oskar into the family and soon realised his affectionate nature was too special not to share.
Ria and Oskar have been volunteering with Wag & Company since April, visiting two older ladies in their homes each week. Over tea and treats, they share stories, enjoy company and, of course, the warmth and happiness a dog can bring to their homes.
Older dog lovers in our region who need Wag friends!
Our volunteers are the beating heart of Wag, and by sharing their lovely dogs, they transform the lives of older dog lovers. All it takes is an hour or two most weeks.
We’re looking for new volunteers and their cuddly dogs in the following areas. Can you help?
10-Year Awards
We’re 10! It’s amazing how fast the years have gone! For the first few years, we were consumed with how Wag could work, how we would keep everyone safe, whether we could recruit enough new volunteers, what staff and technological skills we absolutely need and what could we afford and how we would raise the…
Recruiting a Visiting Services Advisor/Administrator
Could you be our new Visiting Services Advisor/Administrator in Hexham? Find out more and apply.
Older dog lovers in our region who need Wag friends!
Our volunteers are the beating heart of Wag, and by sharing their lovely dogs, they transform the lives of older dog lovers. All it takes is an hour or two most weeks.
We’re looking for new volunteers and their cuddly dogs in the following areas. Can you help?
Daisy Dog the Paediatric Rheumatology Therapy Dog!
Great North Children’s Hospital patients love Daisy, she makes them happy and so much more!
Older dog lovers in our region who need Wag friends!
Our volunteers are the beating heart of Wag, and by sharing their lovely dogs, they transform the lives of older dog lovers. All it takes is an hour or two most weeks.
We’re looking for new volunteers and their cuddly dogs in the following areas. Can you help?
Another great year for Wag & Company!
With your help we’re celebrating another great year 2025/26, supporting more older people than ever before. We’re reflecting on another big year for us all in Wag, ending on 31st March 2026 with 474 volunteer Wag Teams, ✨ 536 in total were supported during the year, you’ve all made 51,973 individual visits to older dog lovers, a staggering 220,649 since we started…
New Trustee and IT Director, Keira Hall
Keira Hall joins Wag & Company as its new IT Director and Trustee, bringing with her eight years of experience as a Solutions Architect at Waterstons, where she has worked extensively across mergers and acquisitions and built trusted relationships with organisations across the globe. Her work has taken her across different time zones, cultures, and…
Older dog lovers in our region who need Wag friends!
Our volunteers are the beating heart of Wag, and by sharing their lovely dogs, they transform the lives of older dog lovers. All it takes is an hour or two most weeks.
We’re looking for new volunteers and their cuddly dogs in the following areas. Can you help?
Volunteer profile: Louise and Friendship Dog Bronte
After a lifesaving heart transplant 10 years ago at the Freeman Hospital, Louise made a promise to herself that she would give something back.
“After being given a second chance at life, being able to use it to bring comfort, companionship and connection to others feels like the most meaningful way I could possibly say thank you.”
Now Lou not only visits with her lovely Friendship Dog Bronte, but she also uses her dog training skills to assess new Friendship Dogs for others.
Older dog lovers in our region who need Wag friends!
Our volunteers are the beating heart of Wag, and by sharing their lovely dogs, they transform the lives of older dog lovers. All it takes is an hour or two most weeks.
We’re looking for new volunteers and their cuddly dogs in the following areas. Can you help?
Sue and Friendship Dog Hector visit Mrs Doreen D
Mrs D is 94. She lost her beloved husband Peter 10 years ago, and she’s lived alone ever since. With no family close by and some difficult health problems to manage, she had become quite isolated and low. Mrs D and her husband always had dogs, always a Corgi, always a girl and always called…
Steve and Friendship Dog Bella visit Mr C in Washington
Mr C is nearly 90 and lives alone in his home in Washington. After losing his beloved wife two years ago, life has felt much quieter and more difficult and of course he misses her terribly. The couple shared a lifelong love of dogs, especially Border Collies, but caring for his wife and his own…
Carol, Dave and Friendship Dog Basil visit Mr and Mrs C in Redcar
Beautiful Basil the Basset Hound has recently started visiting new friends Mr and Mrs C in their home in Redcar, as part of ‘Team Twiby’ with his ‘mum’ Carol and ‘dad’ Dave. The couple have always been dog lovers, most recently sharing their lives with Jack Russells, but a change in their health and ability…
Ali and Friendship Dog Chester visit Mr E in County Durham
Mr E lives alone in his home in County Durham and has been really missing the company of a furry friend. Ongoing health challenges have left him isolated, and although he’s always been a devoted dog lover, he’s no longer able to care for one of his own. After losing his beloved Golden Labrador two…
Mandy and Friendship Dog Lemmy visit Mrs M in Hartlepool
Mrs M is 94 and lives alone in her home in Hartlepool. She’s mostly housebound these days and treasures the times her daughter makes the long trip up from Oxford to visit. But thanks to her new four-legged friend, she now has even more to look forward to. For the past six months, Mrs M…
Nic and Friendship Dog Skye visit Mr and Mrs M in Co.Durham
Mr and Mrs M live in Durham and they are both lifelong dog lovers. They sadly lost their beloved dog a couple of years ago and have really missed having a furry friend in their home ever since. Mrs M’s health conditions have meant they were unable to get another dog, which has been really…
Sarah and Friendship Dog Miley visit Mrs C in Gateshead
Mrs C is 83 and lives alone in her home in Gateshead after losing her husband. Dogs have always been a huge part of her life and her home is full of photos of them all, but after she lost her last dog, she got her much-needed doggy fix by walking her sister in law’s…
Sue and Friendship Dog Barry visit Mr C in the Tees Valley
Mr C lost his wife not long ago and now he lives alone in his home near Redcar. Even though his sons live close by, his house feels very empty, and he misses his wife terribly. Mr C and his wife always had dogs, and as it’s not possible for him to have a dog of his own now, regular visits from Sue and her lovely boy, Barry the Labradoodle, are the next best thing.
Penny and Friendship Dog Ruby visit Mrs F in Middlesbrough
Mrs F is 81 and she’s lived alone in Middlesbrough since she lost her husband a few years ago. She sadly had to rehome her beloved bestie, Teddy the Chihuahua less than a year ago due to her worsening health and mobility which can be debilitating. Although Mrs F knows she made the kindest decision, she of course misses him dearly. She gets regular updates from Teddy’s new owners but needed a furry friend to help fill the Chihuahua shaped hole in her heart.
Jane and Friendship Dog Yogi visit Ms Marjorie B in Newcastle.
Marjorie has always had dogs, Jack Russells and long haired terriers mainly, but she lives alone and now with some difficult health issues, she’s unable to have a dog of her own and she misses them terribly. When she heard about Wag from her GP, she said how excited she was that having dog…
Visiting Wag Team Steph and Finn visit Max in Ayresome Court in Stockton-On-Tees
Beautiful Friendship Dog Finn the Golden Retriever has been visiting Ayresome Court in Stockton on Tees with Steph for some years now and he’s made some great friends, but Finn always visits his bestie Max first for treats and cuddles and he’s never happier than when he’s lying on Max’s bed. Max is deaf and…
Visiting Wag Team Jan and Teddy visit Mrs Mary C in Newcastle
Mary you’ll be amazed to know, is 90 years old. She has significant and deteriorating sight issues and she lives alone in Newcastle. Mary is a huge dog lover but it’s not possible to have one of her own now. Her last dog, a much loved Yorkshire Terrier, lived til she was 21 and Mary…
Visiting Wag Team Louise and Bronte visit Mr Dave L in Gateshead
Dave and his wife live in their own home in Gateshead. Dave is deaf, he lip reads brilliantly though and until early in the year he had a much loved hearing dog, Connie the Bichon Frise, who never left his side. She was a source of assistance, but also love and comfort and both Dave…
Visiting Wag Team Ellie and Toby visit Miss Shirley S in Redcar
Miss S has lived alone for 40 years after her Mum passed away. She has a chronic health condition which is challenging and means she can’t get out independently, and she spends a great deal of time in bed or in a chair alone. She is a huge dog lover; the family always had dogs, but…
Visiting Wag Team Helen and Jasper visit Mrs Gladys D near Consett
Mrs D is in her 90s, amazingly, and she lives alone after her beloved husband passed away a few years ago. She has some health issues which affect her ability to go out, she’s lost a number of friends recently and whilst she’s a huge dog lover (they always had dogs in their family), she can’t…
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