AN eco-friendly house will complete the transformation of a former commercial dog breeding farm in Colwall, near Malvern.

Mick and Carol Claffey, who own the Perrycroft estate, want to replace agricultural sheds that used to house the dogs with a new three-bedroom carbon-neutral property.

The Claffeys bought the estate in 1992, and have since restored the grounds and converted several dilapidated listed buildings into homes.

Perrycroft had been the subject of public protest, eventually closing after an incident in 1989 when 60 beagles bred for experimentation suffocated on a truck going to the continent.

Mr Claffey hopes removing the dog sheds will be the final step in a healing process for the once infamous site.

"It cannot have been very pleasant for the beagles here, and this will get rid of the last reminder of that," he said. "It's such a lovely location, but when we got here parts of it looked more like Colditz."

The couple hope to move into the house, which will boast renewable energy systems, in 2010. Mr Claffey said making it environmentally-friendly was always an issue.

"It's close to our hearts, and something I think most of us would do given the chance."

The plans have already found favour with Colwall Parish Council. Planning chairman Phil Browning said the Claffeys' work at the estate had already made it something to be proud of.

"This latest development will bring to an end a chapter in the life of Perrycroft Estate which a lot of local people found unacceptable," he said.