AN appeal has been made to dog lovers in Wiltshire to foster puppies for potential police use.

The Tri-Force Dog unit, which is made up of Wiltshire, Gloucester and Avon & Somerset dog handlers, is looking for people to home the dogs for around six months.

The dogs will be aged between six and 18 months, normally a spaniel or Labrador breed.

Volunteers to provide weekend and holiday cover for puppy walkers will also be required.

Gary Isom, a police dog instructor, said: “As a puppy fosterer, the puppy would live with you at home from seven weeks old. Under normal circumstances, the puppy would remain with you for at least six months and would then be allocated to a handler.

“Your role will be to introduce the puppy to as many new environments and experiences as possible, whilst under our guidance and start training the puppy under our Module system.

“Obviously the puppies are incredibly cute when they are very young and I am sure there will be thousands of people that would love to give them a home, but you must be able to answer yes to a set of questions, and only serious applicants with experience in training dogs will be considered.

“The early months in the development of these puppies are the most crucial and can bring a real challenge - it will require a great deal of commitment and time from yourself and your family.

“The puppies are highly driven and are not the type of dogs that are happy to sleep all day.

“They therefore need lots of regular training, exercise and stimulation and cannot be left alone for excessive periods of time.

“Ideally, they need someone who is at home, or works from home to give them 24/7 supervision in the early weeks.”

All puppy walkers will be under the supervision of Police Dog Training Instructors who will be able to instruct, assist and guide foster volunteers in the development of their puppy.

Anyone interested in fostering should email puppyscheme@avonandsomerset.pnn.co.uk