An airport has hosted a training session for guide dog puppies for the very first time.
The BBC reported the Guide Dogs charity ran the session at Southampton Airport to get the puppies used to the sights, sounds and smells of a working airport as part of their preparation to become future guide dogs.
The puppies toured different areas, including the baggage carousel, duty-free and the departure lounge, with their puppy raisers and were rewarded for behaving calmly and ignoring distractions.
Morris Boyle, operations director at Southampton Airport, told the BBC the airport would like to make the training sessions a regular occurrence.
During the session the dogs encountered many new challenges, including the stairs in and out of a plane, which puppy raiser Simon Wallenburg said were “very different” to what they are used to, such as shopping centres.
He said: “They’ve never ever come across stairs like this before, so it’s been very good for their training.”
Puppy raisers are volunteers who look after a six-to-eight-week-old puppy for 12-16 months, providing it with the vital foundation for its future role as a guide dog through training, socialisation, the introduction of new environments and experiences – all while providing a loving home.
Leanne Kelley, Puppy Development Advisor at Guide Dogs, said it is “really important” to expose young dogs to different environments, such as an airport.
She said: “It’s sometimes nice just to pause and for the dogs just to learn to relax in that environment, and that can be difficult when you’ve got a bouncy playful puppy.”