Our Mission
Rainbow Pooch Pride is a social enterprise celebrating Rainbow Pooches – canine companions who provide quiet, powerful support to LGBTQIA+ lives. These superheroes in dog disguise play a vital role in our community’s mental health, offering unwavering care, fostering trust and connection, expanding the idea of family beyond traditional boundaries, and providing unconditional love that strengthens belonging. We see these dogs as essential partners, bringing comfort, stability, and connections to nature that deeply nurture our wellbeing.
Through services and social events, we unite the LGBTQIA+ community through their shared love of dogs. By supporting individuals to be the best version of themselves – for their dogs, their community, and each other – we strengthen bonds, promote resilience, and build a more connected, supportive world.
Our Core Values
Wellbeing (in nature)
We recognise that LGBTQIA+ lives are disproportionately affected by mental health challenges. Wellbeing is at the centre of all our activities. Particularly, green spaces are proven to improve physical, emotional and mental wellbeing. We value that dogs connect us to green spaces more often.
Kindness and Understanding
We recognise that some days are better than others. We practice kindness and understanding as an ethic of communal caretaking and caregiving. Through this we build nurturing and supportive environments that welcome the individual, and foster understanding between people of diverse sexual and gender orientations.
Pride (Trans Inclusive)
We come together with, and through, our sense of pride – pride in our community, and pride in our dogs and the joy they bring to LGBTQIA+ lives. We are proudly trans inclusive, actively celebrating and supporting trans people as an essential part of our vibrant community. Everyone is welcome. Our shared love of dogs unites us, and our commitment to inclusion keeps us strong.
More-than-human kinships
We know that dogs are integral to how LGBTQIA+ individuals envision and enact family. We value more-than-human kinships which offer a stable base of unconditional love, a sense of belonging, and enable us to build families not solely defined by blood/biological ties.
Substance Free Social Space
LGBTQIA+ social spaces can often centre around the party culture of a young and vibrant nightlife. LGBTQIA+ lives, however, face unique mental health challenges that may leave them more vulnerable to substance use. We offer a healthy, safe, *substance-free, alternative space for people to meet and socialise.
*Free from alcohol, illicit drugs, the illicit use of prescribed drugs, and marijuana (this does not include medical cannabis prescribed in the UK by a Doctor regulated under the General Medical Council (GMC) and registered on the Specialist Register nor does it include over-the-counter CBD (Cannabidol) that is THC (tectrahydrocannabinol) free).
