Tayto Park has announced two special awareness days for Irish Guide Dogs for the blind, which will take place on Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 of August.

Tayto Park is Ireland's only theme park and zoo, and is a proud supporter and charity partner of Assistance Dogs in association with Irish Guide Dogs. 

The park has donated €5,000 to the charity, and has also put together an array of activities to support and raise funds for the brilliant organisation.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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The Irish Guide Dogs staff and Tayto Park volunteers will encourage visitors across the two days to experience the Sensory Tunnel, which offers users the sensory chance to experience what it's like to be vision impaired.

Guests will be invited to walk through the tunnel blindfolded with street noises and loud traffic blared over the speakers around them. Surfaces like brick walls, a wooden fence, netting, grass and fur allows users to feel their way through the five-metre-long structure.

Floor panels with bumps similar to the tactile pavement used to guide vision impaired people on the streets are included in the structure.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Irish Guide Dogs staff will be on hand to provide information to visitors about how the charity can be supported, and Tayto Park will have bucket collections raising funds for them.

Speaking on the partnership Chairman of the Irish Guide Dogs Board, Patrick Burke said,

“Support such as this is fundamental to our ability to reach and help families of children with autism and those with visual impairment achieve independence and mobility."

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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85 percent of our income comes from fundraising and donations from the public and our partnerships with our corporate supporters means we can provide a future for a family of a child with autism or person with visual impairment achieve independence”.

Tayto Park are proud charity partners of Assistance Dogs in association with Irish Guide Dogs, ALONE, supporting older people to age at home and JIGSAW, supporting young people’s health in mind.

Feature image: Instagram/@irishguidedogs