GUIDE dog puppies spent a spooky day visiting Wookey Hole, near Wells to learn about the sights, sounds and smells associated with Halloween.
The eight puppies, aged around a year old, along with their volunteer puppy raisers, explored the first section of the famous caves - even getting to meet the legendary Witch of Wookey Hole. They then toured the Dinosaur Valley, Victorian paper mill and Mirror Maze.
Trips such as this are an important part of early training for guide dog puppies, helping to get them used to different environments so they feel calm and confident when they go to places with their future guide dog owners.
All the puppies are currently living with their puppy raisers who look after them for 12-17 months.
They guide them through training, socialisation and the introduction of new environments and experiences while providing a loving home before they start their formal training, hopefully qualifying as working guide dogs at around two years of age.
Puppy development advisor for Guide Dogs in Somerset, Lucy Avery, led the training session and said: “A big part of early training is exposing puppies to new environments and experiences, so visiting Wookey Hole was not only fun, but a great way to learn about things they may encounter around Halloween time.
“The puppies also got to socialise with each other and practise skills including walking up and down steps, food manners, and moving from outside to enclosed, darkly-lit spaces.
“Thank you so much to everyone at Wookey Hole for hosting us and being so helpful and welcoming.”
Guide Dogs is looking for more puppy raisers across Somerset and the wider South West region. Go to their website for more information on the requirements and pre-requisites to look after a Guide Dog puppy.