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Date of photo: 2008	© Copyright Mat Fascione and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence
The Dog & Hedgehog was situated on The Green. This pub closed on 4th February 2024 after the proprietor retired after running the pub since 2011.
Source: Movement80
Rumour has it that the Dog and Hedgehog's name is derived from a 19th century Victorian engraving showing a dog looking quizzically at a hedgehog captioned "A Rough Customer". This engraving served as a model for the inn sign and is mentioned in the Wordsworth Dictionary of Pub Names. A lot of rural pubs reference hunting in their name and were often located close to the village green where the huntsmen and women could gather on horseback for a stirrup cup before galloping off into the countryside.
dadlington.com
The earliest document that the current owner has dates back to 1711. The Dictionary of Pub Names (David Rothwell: 2006) says that pub, the only Dog and Hedgehog in the country, was so called by a former licensee who is said to have enjoyed an engraving of a dog and hedgehog entitled “Rough Customer”. It was this engraving that served as the model for the original inn sign. However, the earliest mention of the pub; an article on 25th July 1840 in the Leicester Chronicle about one George Freeman injuring himself whilst shooting rooks, refers to it as The Bitch Hedgehog and Ferret. Trade directories list the names of the various landlords and landladies who ran the pub over the years. Henry Freeman was in charge at the time of the tithe map of 1843 and was still going strong 12 years later. He is described not only as a maltster and victualler, but also a carpenter and a farmer. William Hollyoak, who held the reigns from 1870 to 1881, doubled up as a tailor when not serving pints. The pub appears in a number of newspaper stories during the 19th century. In April 1854, Henry Moon was accused of assaulting John Cross after a parish meeting and “making very free with the juice of Sir John Barleycorn.” Just over a year later and the papers reported Ann Towers being called “bad names” by her husband in the pub. Twice it was the venue for inquests. In September 1883, a young rapscallion who’d stolen a purse, rather unwisely decided to blow his new-found wealth on ale. The locals suspected he had committed a felony and held him captive in the Dog until the police arrived. The fortunes of the pub have fluctuated in more recent times. In the early 1990s, it was bought by Steve and Roberta Bowyer for a knock-down price. Steve renovated the premises and introduced a massive menu of some 35-40 items, all written on a chalkboard above the steps to the lower dining room. He brought in Paul Bannister as manager and business really boomed. Unfortunately, it was not to last. The pub was bought by Enterprise Inns who installed a succession of managers. Finally, one of the firm’s directors bought it, but his costly renovations coincided with the financial crash of 2008 and the building was repossessed by the Allied Irish Bank. For two years it lay unoccupied. Rumours as to its future circulated and a local campaign raised awareness as to its plight. Then, in October 2010, Madeleine Middleton, now a Dadlington resident, spotted the for-sale signs while boating on the canal. She passed the word to some friends in Covent Garden who were looking for a country pub. This led to Sandra MacDonald, a Canadian, buying the pub, with American Bill Reinking and Slovakian Robert Marko successfully taking over the running on 13 May 2011.
dadlington-history.myfreesites.net
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