Rescue guide
Dog rescues in Norwich and Norfolk, compared
Norwich has no dog rescue kennels of its own, and until this update we listed almost no dogs near it. Four Norfolk rescues now add theirs: a greyhound charity at Hainford, kennels at Hickling and Great Yarmouth, and a sanctuary at Woodrising. This guide sets out what each one charges, who it will home a dog with, and the two big names whose dogs you will need to look up yourself.
By the LocalPetFinder Team · Checked 6 November 2026
The short answer
For a dog near Norwich, the closest rescue we list is Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders at Hainford, about 6 miles north, which charges £200 for a retired racer. FAITH Animal Rescue at Hickling and NASAT in Great Yarmouth (£300) rehome dogs from their own kennels, and PACT at Woodrising asks at least £350. Hillside Animal Sanctuary and Dogs Trust Snetterton also rehome dogs in Norfolk, but we don't list them.
- Rescue adoption fees
- Each rescue sets its own adoption fee. Dogs Trust charges £300 for a puppy or adult dog in England, Wales and Scotland, and Blue Cross fees start from £235 for dogs aged 8 or over and £335 for dogs aged 1 to 7. The fee usually covers neutering, microchipping and first vaccinations, and each rescue confirms its own fee.
- Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders
- £200, with a leather collar and lead, a muzzle and 4 weeks of free Petplan insurance.
- Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust (NASAT)
- £300: a £50 deposit, not refunded, after a successful home check, then £250 on collection.
- PACT Animal Sanctuary
- Minimum donations of £350 for an adult, £400 for a puppy of 6 to 12 months and £450 under 6 months.
- FAITH Animal Rescue
- No fee on its site: ask when you apply.
- Buying a puppy
- By Blue Cross figures, £400 to £3,000 for the pup on its own.
- Over a dog's life
- At least £6,200 to £18,800, by PDSA's 2024 reckoning, on top of whatever the dog cost you.
Norwich and Norfolk dog rescues compared
All four rescues in the table join LocalPetFinder with this update, so their dogs appear on our Norwich pages from now on. Distances are straight-line from Norwich, and the rescue itself handles your application and checks.
| Rescue | Where | Dogs | How you adopt | Dog fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders | Hainford (about 6 miles) | Retired racing greyhounds | Enquiry, home visit, paperwork appointment | £200 |
| FAITH Animal Rescue | Hickling, on the Broads (about 15 miles) | Dogs and cats | Form first, meeting by appointment, home check | Not published |
| Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust | Great Yarmouth (about 18 miles) | Dogs | Form, kennel meeting, home check, deposit | £300 |
| PACT Animal Sanctuary | Woodrising, near Hingham | Dogs, cats and other pets | Form, at least three visits, signed agreement | From £350 (adult) |
How each dog rescue near Norwich works
The steps look alike on paper. The rules about children, gardens and visits are where they part company, so read the one for the rescue holding your dog.
Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders, Hainford
The name is a clue to its past, not its address. It began in 1999 as a welfare scheme set up by the owners of Yarmouth Stadium, has found homes for more than 2,600 greyhounds, and now rents kennels at Hainford. You contact the kennel team or fill in its form, a home checker looks at your fencing, and then you book a time to sign the paperwork and take your hound home. Someone visits again 3 to 4 weeks later.
Its advice page says a garden is needed except in exceptional circumstances, a ground-floor flat with garden access may be considered, and renters need the landlord's written permission. Some greyhounds can live with cats, but many can't. It will always take one of its hounds back.
FAITH Animal Rescue, Hickling
FAITH is a small independent rescue at the end of Stubb Road in Hickling, where its dogs share kennels and can play together. It is open to visitors from 11am to 3pm, but meetings with an animal are by appointment only, after it has read your form; it keeps your details for 2 months, so tell it if you are still looking after that.
Every dog is wormed, vaccinated and chipped, and it checks your home before adoption. Its adoption agreement asks you to walk your dog on a slip lead and to bring it back to FAITH if you can no longer keep it.
Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust (NASAT), Great Yarmouth
NASAT dates from 1979, when two sisters started it, and its kennels on Fremantle Road were once the town's police pound. Send its form before anything else: it won't book a meeting without one and asks you not to ring to skip the step. It can't take applications from homes with children under 10.
At the kennels you can walk the dog; a second meeting introduces a dog you already have, and two of its team then visit your home. A garden isn't always essential. A £50 deposit, which you don't get back, secures the dog, and the remaining £250 is paid on collection. New arrivals go on its Facebook page first.
PACT Animal Sanctuary, Woodrising
PACT is an appointment-only sanctuary near Hingham that also runs a wildlife hospital. Its dog rules ask for a private enclosed garden with fences of 4 to 6 ft, rule out flats and shared gardens, and expect you to visit the dog at least three times, with everyone in the household meeting it, before it goes home with pet insurance in place.
Choosing a dog rescue from Norwich
Our Norwich dogs page shows who is listed today; after that, weigh up these points:
- Children at home. NASAT takes no applications from homes with children under 10. Elsewhere, read each dog's own profile for the ages it can live with.
- A cat already. Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders says many greyhounds can't live with cats, so ask about the hound you like before you apply.
- Flats and gardens. PACT won't home a dog to a flat or a shared garden, and Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders needs a secure garden except in exceptional cases. NASAT says some of its dogs can manage without one.
- Time to visit. PACT wants at least three visits and NASAT a second meeting if you have a dog, so allow a few weeks.
Hillside Animal Sanctuary and Dogs Trust Snetterton
Hillside Animal Sanctuary at Frettenham, north of Norwich, rehomes dogs to adopters in the Norfolk area. It asks a minimum donation of £325, keeps your form for three months, checks your home, places puppies only with families whose children are over 10 (adult dogs over 8), and wants its dogs to live indoors as family pets. We don't list Hillside's dogs, so use its own page.
Dogs Trust Snetterton, on North End Road south-west of Norwich, lets you browse every afternoon except Wednesday and Friday. Its dogs aren't on our pages either.
Dog rescue near Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft
NASAT is in Great Yarmouth itself and about 9 miles from Lowestoft, and FAITH at Hickling is about 12 miles from Great Yarmouth. Our Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft pages start from the coast; NASAT's own page explains its steps.
What happens to stray dogs in Norwich?
Norwich City Council uses Animal Warden Services (AWS) to collect and kennel strays. It scans each dog for a chip, contacts the owner where it can, and lists dogs on its found dog register. A chipped or tagged dog returned the same day costs its owner £25; an unchipped one costs £75, or £125 if it goes to kennels, plus £17 a night and vet bills. A repeat within 12 months adds £60.
The council covers the city only; Broadland, South Norfolk and Great Yarmouth have their own.
Puppies, greyhounds and older dogs
On 6 November 2026 none of these four rescues had a puppy on its own pages; our rescue puppies guide explains where they come from and how to buy without being caught out. For a calm adult, try the greyhound and older dogs pages.
The law in England
Microchipping and change of keeper
In England, as everywhere in the UK, every dog must be microchipped and registered by 8 weeks old. Since 6 April 2016 a dog in England can't pass to a new keeper until it is chipped, and the new keeper must update the database (the England regulations). A rescue chips before rehoming; after adoption, keep the details up to date.
Lucy's Law: buying a puppy
In England, Lucy's Law has meant since 6 April 2020 that puppies under six months can't be sold by a third party such as a pet shop or dealer: you buy direct from the breeder or adopt from a rehoming centre.
Banned dog types
In England, it is against the law to sell, abandon, give away or breed from a banned type: the Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro and XL Bully. Whether a dog is banned depends on what it looks like rather than its breed or name, so no rescue can rehome one and none appear on LocalPetFinder. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is not a banned type.
XL Bully dogs
In England, since 31 December 2023 it has been illegal to breed, sell, advertise, gift, exchange or abandon an XL Bully or let it stray, and since 1 February 2024 illegal to own one without a Certificate of Exemption (gov.uk: England and Wales).
Questions
Tap a question to expand
Is there a dog rescue in Norwich?
Not inside the city. The nearest we list is Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders at Hainford, about 6 miles north; FAITH Animal Rescue at Hickling, NASAT in Great Yarmouth and PACT at Woodrising are further out. Hillside Animal Sanctuary at Frettenham also rehomes dogs, but we don't list it.
Which dog rescues cover Norfolk?
Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders, FAITH Animal Rescue, the Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust (NASAT) and PACT Animal Sanctuary all list dogs with us from this update. Hillside Animal Sanctuary and Dogs Trust Snetterton rehome dogs in the county too, on their own websites.
How much does it cost to adopt a dog near Norwich?
Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders charges £200, NASAT £300 and PACT at least £350 for an adult. Hillside asks a minimum donation of £325, and FAITH doesn't publish a fee. Blue Cross reckons £400 to £3,000 for a puppy bought from a breeder.
Is Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders in Great Yarmouth?
No. It began at Yarmouth Stadium in 1999, but its kennels are now at Hainford, about 6 miles north of Norwich.
Are Hillside Animal Sanctuary's dogs on LocalPetFinder?
No. Hillside at Frettenham rehomes dogs to Norfolk adopters for a minimum donation of £325, but we don't list its dogs, so check its own dog rescue page.
Can I adopt a dog from NASAT with young children?
Not if any child at home is under 10: NASAT says it can't accept those applications. The other rescues we list set no blanket age limit on their pages, so check each dog's profile.
What happens to stray dogs in Norwich?
Animal Warden Services collects them for Norwich City Council and checks for a chip. Owners pay £25 for a chipped dog returned the same day, or £125 plus £17 a night if an unchipped dog goes to kennels.
Is there a dog rescue near Great Yarmouth?
Yes. NASAT's kennels are on Fremantle Road in Great Yarmouth, and FAITH Animal Rescue is about 12 miles away at Hickling. Both list dogs on our Great Yarmouth page from this update.
Keep reading
For rescues and rehoming centres
Are you a rescue near Norwich? Get your animals listed free.
Every animal links back to your own adoption page, and you can ask to be removed at any time.
Sources: Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders: how to adopt (fee, steps) · Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders: about us (1999, kennels) · Yarmouth Greyhound Homefinders: life with a greyhound (garden, cats, renting) · FAITH Animal Rescue: home page (kennels, opening, neutering) · FAITH Animal Rescue: adopt an animal (forms, appointments) · FAITH Animal Rescue: adoption agreement · Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust: home page · Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust: how to adopt a dog (fee, children, steps) · Norfolk & Suffolk Animal Trust: our story (1979, police pound) · PACT Animal Sanctuary: home page (appointments, wildlife hospital) · PACT Animal Sanctuary: dogs for rehoming · PACT Animal Sanctuary: dog profile with fees and rules · Hillside Animal Sanctuary: dog rescue (donation, rules) · Dogs Trust: Snetterton centre · Norwich City Council: report a stray or lost dog (AWS, charges) · Animal Warden Services: found dogs · Blue Cross: getting a puppy · PDSA: the cost of owning a dog · gov.uk: Get your dog microchipped · gov.uk: Banned dogs · gov.uk: Lucy's Law in England · legislation.gov.uk: Microchipping of Cats and Dogs (England) Regulations 2023 · gov.uk: Ban on XL Bully dogs