Visiting Saltram with your dog

Dog looking at camera — Dogs are welcome to join you on this walk | © National Trust

With miles of paths around Saltram estate and unique views into the city, there's plenty for your four-legged friends to enjoy. Discover the best dog-friendly walking routes and areas they can enjoy off the lead.

Dogs at Saltram East

We are very excited to have opened up more than 32 hectares of green space with new multi-use trails, creating new opportunities for the people of Plymouth to connect with nature and heritage, supported by Sport England Lottery Funding and The National Lottery Heritage Fund. In this new space, there are differnent zone rules across the area at certain times of year for dogs.

Dogs are welcome off lead in all areas of Saltram East between April and August whilst the sheep are away. Please keep you dog under close control, with good recall, remembering that not all users are fond of dogs. Between September and March we need to ask you to keep your dog on a lead in certain areas with red signs. This is for the safety and health of our resident sheep, who graze this time of year.

We ask that you please collect your dog waste and pop it in the nearest bin at the end of your walk. If the bins are full please take your waste home with you to dispose of their as in other coast and open countryside areas. There are no water bowls at Saltram East but lots available at the stables area.

Our pawprint rating system

We’ve been working on making it easier for you to find out how dog-friendly your visit will be before you and your four-legged friend arrive. To help with this, we've created a new pawprint rating system and given all the places in our care a rating. You can find this information in the National Trust members’ handbook.

Saltram is a two pawprint rated place.

These places have water bowls, dog bins and dog-friendly walks. You’ll be able to take your dog into some areas, but not everywhere. Read on to discover exactly where you can take your dog at Saltram.

Where can I take my dog at Saltram?

We know dogs are part of the family, and there are plenty of ways for you to enjoy Saltram together.

We're now welcoming dogs into certain areas of the garden. Dogs must be on a short, fixed lead and kept to the paths to help us protect this special space for everyone to enjoy.

Across the rest of the estate, there are acres of parkland and woodland where dogs can explore off-lead (under close control), as well as lead-only areas full of exciting smells, sights and sounds.

Dogs are also welcome in the Fennimore Room – our dog-friendly space inside the café – where you can even treat them to a doggy ice cream.

Dogs in the garden

We’re welcoming dogs on short, fixed leads into selected areas of Saltram’s garden. To help everyone enjoy their visit, please keep paws on paths and ensure dogs remain on a short, fixed lead at all times.

Some parts of the garden – including Serpentine, The Orange Grove and The Great Terrace/Northern Slopes – will remain dog-free to provide peaceful spaces for those who prefer a quieter visit. It also helps with important habitat protection and keeping areas where children play and families picnic clean and safe.

Friendly signs and guidance from our team will help you find your way. While there are no dog waste bins inside the garden, free bags are available from the Welcome Centre and bins are just outside. If you don’t have a short, fixed lead, we’ll be happy to lend you one – just pop into the Welcome Centre and return it via the second-hand bookshop.

Saltram's Dog Passport

At Saltram we have a loyalty scheme for walking your pooch. Head to the welcome centre and our team will be able to give you a 'Saltram Dog Passport' where you can collect stamps and rewards for your four-legged friend each time you walk around the parkland. It's a free booklet, if you have a membership card with you, you can bring it along to get scanned as each scan contributes to help look after Saltram forever, for everyone.

When should I use a lead?

Dogs must be kept on a lead in the stables area, which comprises the café, Welcome Centre and around the duck pond and play park. Dogs should also be kept on a short, fixed lead in the garden. Be prepared to swap to one of our leads if you don't have one with you.

Please also keep dogs on leads in the car park, as it can be a very busy area. Once you are in the park they can be off the lead, but please ensure your dog is under close control at all times and look out for seasonal signs advising you where livestock is present. Particularly in the new paths at Saltram East where our resident sheep graze.

We also ask that you are always respectful of other dog walkers, pedestrians and cyclists. Much of Saltram's paths are shared use and are there for everyone to enjoy.

If you spot a dog with a yellow lead, ribbon, or bandana at Saltram, it's a gentle signal that the dog needs a little extra space. Please help by keeping your dog at a distance and respecting their need for a calm environment.

Where can't my dog go?

Dogs are not allowed in the house or inside historic buildings. There are also some areas in the garden where we allow assistance dogs only, this is to keep play lawns clean and safe for young children and to protect certain wildlife habitats as best we can.

Dog waste bins

There are 11 dog waste bins around the Saltram estate. Please clear up after your pet and use the bins provided. If you can't find a bin, or if the bins are full please take your waste home as you would at other coast or countryside areas. Leaving bagged waste in the countryside is a hazard to wildlife and livestock.

These rules are in place to make sure everyone can enjoy their visit to Saltram, to help look after the historic garden and house, and to ensure the wellbeing of livestock and wildlife.

Visitors walk along a path through the woods and beside a river at Saltram, Devon — Walking through the woods at Saltram | © National Trust Images / John Millar

Keeping control of your dog

Our definition of close or effective control is:

Being able to recall your dogs in any situation at the first call
Being able to clearly see your dog at all times (not just knowing they have gone into the undergrowth or over the crest of the hill). In practice, this means keeping them on a footpath if the surrounding vegetation is too dense for your dog to be visible
Not allowing them to approach other visitors without their consent
Having a lead with you to use if you encounter livestock or wildlife, or if you are asked to use one

The Canine Code

We’ve worked with our partner Forthglade to come up with this Canine Code, which helps to make sure everyone can enjoy their day:

Keep them close: using a short lead avoids tripping up other visitors and helps to keep your dog from disturbing ground-nesting birds and farm animals. It's essential to use a short lead around sheep. But if cattle approach you, it's best to let your dog off the lead, and call them back when it's safe to do so.
Pick up the poo: please always clear up after your dog. If you can't find a bin nearby, take the poo bags home with you.
Watch the signs: keep an eye on local signs and notices wherever you're walking. They'll tell you if a beach has a dog ban, for instance, or if a path has been diverted, or if you're in an area where dogs can run off-lead.
Stay on the ball: remember that not everyone loves dogs, and some people fear them. So make sure your dog doesn't run up to other people, especially children.