Coronavirus: Spalding area businesses battling to keep afloat

The owners of a family-run Pinchbeck kennels have been dreading the phone ringing due to cancellations.

Marlene Aspden (68), who runs Highfield Kennels with her husband Mark and daughter Kelly Newell, has had the business for 30 years.

But amid the coronavirus she is also fearing for the future, as people cancel their reservations.

“We hate the phone ringing,” Marlene said, “because every call is a cancellation.”

On Friday morning she explained that they were reluctantly having to let a member of staff go - but by the afternoon there was some hope with the Government’s new promise of more help for businesses.

Yesterday morning (Saturday) Kelly, at the kennels in Highfields Lane, said they hoped to find a way to keep the employee with them.

“We have not terminated his contract,” she said. “We want him back and he wants to come back, and what the Government has announced is very promising.”

In the meantime, the kennels is offering day boarding options for people to drop off their dog while they go shopping - or an option for the dogs to use the free-run area at various prices.

They will also walk the dogs, brush, deodorise, and clean the pooches’ ears and eyes, and overnight stay sessions are still offered.

Helen Vaitkevicius, who runs Spalding dog training business Lincs Dog Training, made the difficult decision on Monday afternoon to cancel all classes ‘for the safety of clients.’

She said: “People have got to take heed; this is a serious, serious virus.”

But she is keeping in touch with all her clients, who are sharing with her their training videos of their dogs and their 'homework'.

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