A WOMAN who set up a dog caring business is introducing a franchise model after growing the operation to a network of more than 600 carers.

Claire Rhodes set up Holidays4Dogs in 2006 to offer an alternative to dog kennels for holidaying pet owners.

The mother-of-four from Holme-on-Spalding Moor now employs a team of six to oversee a network of more than 600 approved carers, handling 6,000-plus holidays a year.

Mrs Rhodes came up with the idea when looking after her friends’ dogs. She said: “It’s been an incredible journey and I’ve enjoyed every minute – we all share a love of dogs and I think that shines through everything we do at Holidays4Dogs.

“I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved and know that people like what we do. Every week we get hundreds of people telling us how wonderful Holidays4Dogs is on our Facebook pages so we must be doing something right.”

She converted stables at her home for the expanding office operation.

Interest from customers means she is now creating a franchise model for Holiday4Dogs. Offering people the chance to run their own business with central support, she has already received interest from across the UK.

Mrs Rhodes said: “The business has gone from strength to strength. We’ve had people book online from the travel agents as they prepare to book their holiday. We were getting so busy that we realised that if we were going to keep up such a high level of customer service and close interaction with dog owners and carers, we needed support. Now people can buy into the concept and create their own Holidays4Dogs business in their own area, with our support.”

An online booking system, active website, and a Facebook site with 38,000 likes have all boosted growth.