Meet ‘DoggyWarriors’

I have always been a big dog lover, but it wasn’t until a very special three-legged dog came into my life while living in Dubai that I decided I wanted to find a way to help more dogs in need.

I met Beautie while volunteering at a dog shelter in Dubai. I felt an instant connection with her. The most happy, friendly, and inspiring dog I had ever met. She had been found on the streets of Abu Dhabi after being hit by car. She spent just under a year in foster care, but nobody wanted to adopt her because of her missing leg. I wasn’t looking for a dog at the time but when she ended up in a crate at the vets with nowhere to go, I convinced my husband to take her on.

Only weeks after adopting Beautie, I lost my dad and she helped me through the grief. She gave a reason to get up every day and she would sit and lick away my tears. Dogs have this special intuition to know when we need them the most. I might have rescued her, but she rescued me right back.

When we moved back to the UK in 2017, I started researching the challenges surrounding dogs and their welfare. I was shocked to discover that 130.000 dogs get abandoned each year (that was pre-COVID) and that there are over 800 rescue centres in the UK.

These charities rely on donations, often struggle to survive and are run by volunteers. I wanted to help raise funds for them. After lots of brainstorming, I came up with the idea for a lottery and to partner with five different charities each month to give everyone a chance.

At the start of COVID, I lost my corporate marketing job, which was horrible at the time but it gave me the push, time and head space I needed to start my business.

In July 2020 I started off with just the charity lottery, #DoggyLottery. 60% goes to dogs in need. I wanted to make sure the percentage we donate was more than double the amount that leading lotteries donate to charitable causes. It was really well received and within a year I raised over £25,000. However, I knew we could do much more. So, in December 2021 we evolved into DoggyWarriors and added an online shop to try and reach an even bigger audience.

Our collection consists of hoodies, sweaters, t-shirts, tote bags and dog bandanas and 10% of all sales goes to the DoggyLottery charity fund.

We have made sure our products are high quality and either made from organic cotton, recycled polyester or handmade in the UK to support fellow small businesses. Our packaging is made from 100% recycled plastics and is recyclable.

To date, we have raised over £50,000 for 80 different dog charities and we are so proud to state we are now an award-winning business.