Tiny Willow, Farrington

Tiny Willow is a very small self-contained cottage at Farrington, a hamlet in the north Dorset countryside between Child Okeford and Iwerne Minster. It is worth being clear about the location up front: the postal address is Blandford Forum, but the cottage sits several miles north-west of the town down rural lanes. That is the right setting for a quiet dog-walking break and the wrong one if you were expecting to walk into Blandford for dinner.

Up to two well-behaved dogs are welcome, and the welcome is a genuine one rather than a tolerated one. The owners live in the property next door and keep seven rescue dogs of their own, which explains both the easy attitude and the one thing they ask in return: that visiting dogs are settled enough not to unsettle theirs. Guests mention the hosts more than anything else - welcome gifts on arrival, practical help when it is needed, and a straightforwardly dog-friendly outlook. The cottage has a small enclosed courtyard garden, planted with pots and herbs and laid with an artificial-grass rug that dogs take to happily; it is a pleasant spot to sit out in the evening and a safe one to let a dog potter in.

Inside, the clue is in the name. It is compact, but everything is there and everything works - a good shower, a dishwasher, plenty of heat, which matters when a dog has come back wet. The bathroom is on the small side. It suits a couple or a solo traveller rather than a family.

The one real caveat for dog owners is that there is no obvious walk from the doorstep. The lanes are quiet but not especially interesting, and the good north Dorset walking - Hambledon Hill, Hod Hill, the Stour valley - needs a short drive. There are no shops or facilities in the hamlet either, so arrive stocked up.

Best suited to a couple or solo traveller touring north Dorset with a dog or two, who want a warm, well-kept base and a private garden, and who are happy to drive five or ten minutes to the walks.