MAD dogs and Bolton people will go out in the midday sun next month in a bid to beat a funding headache for a popular charity.

The Dog Mad Day is being staged to bring in much-needed cash for the Bolton-based Guide Dogs for the Blind who have lost £130,000 due to the foot and mouth crisis this summer.

Organisers are hoping the event will help boost their dwindling funds lost due to cancelled agricultural shows in Lancashire and throughout the north west because of foot and mouth.

The shows provided a platform for the charity which they relied on to bring in cash.

Now, Guide Dogs are hoping to recoup some of their losses by staging the giant fun day at Leverhulme Park, Moss Bank Way, Bolton on Sunday August 5.

The event will include a sponsored one or three mile walk around the wooded grounds of the park.

Organiser Peter Emmett said: "Participants can complete the walk in whatever fashion they prefer be it walk, run, jog, cycle or fancy dress.

"Everyone is welcome whether they have a four-legged friend or not!"

The walk will be followed by a range of activities, providing a fun day out for all the family.

There will be guide dogs displays, face painting, grooming, tagging, competitions, children's rides and blindfold walks with a guide dog.

Rod Arthern, Fundraising Development Officer at the Regional Guide Dogs training Centre in Bolton said: "It is a great way of raising funds for Guide Dogs and having a fun day out with friends and family at the same time.

"There will be lots going on with something for everyone. It doesn't matter whether you have a four legged friend or not, everyone is welcome to take part and join in the fun!"

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association was founded in 1931 to give blind and partially sighted people greater independence. Seventy years later the Association is recognised as the world leader for breeding and training guide dogs -- with its headquarters based in Bolton.

It costs £10 a day to support a Guide Dog Partnership with the charity relying on voluntary income to deliver its services.

Mr Arthern said: "We have almost 5,000 working guide dogs in the UK and also provide a comprehensive range of mobility and rehabilitation services including long cane training and advice on low vision aids."

The charity was also urging school children in Bolton to wear sunglasses today as they launch their campaign for people to wear approved safe glasses to protect their vision from the sun.

For further information on the Dog Mad Day contact Rod Arthern on 01204 492534.