PetsWALK 2013!

Last Saturday I volunteered at the Kitsap Humane Society's annual summer event, PetsWALK.  In years past, they've held it in June, around the time of our anniversary, so I haven't been able to be a part of the event.  But, the event got moved to July which meant I finally got to be a part of it.  This is one of two annual fundraising events that KHS hosts each year and so I tried my hand at fundraising, and although I didn't meet my goal (about $95 short - bummer!!), I feel like I was able to play a role in the fundraising efforts towards KHS. 

The main event is the walk.  Participants can choose to walk a 1K or 5K trail with a furry friend (most bring dogs, although there were other critters in attendance).  Other events follow the walk (more on that in a little bit), there were pet-related vendors all over and KHS' Outreach trailer set up with animals up for adoption.  It was a pretty fun morning for all.

I wish I could take credit for the awesome photos, but they are from Chance Keso Photography.

Okay, so on to the day's events.  First, some of the awesome canine friends I got to meet:

Aren't they beautiful?!  I didn't get to bring Sadie and Gunnar since I was working the event, so it was great to get my "dog-fill" from everyone's pooches.

Here's a shot of the starting line before everyone got there:

And later, when all the participants were on their way:

And then there were the events after the walk.  There was a talent contest.  This dog impressed me...he held that treat there until the owner gave him the command to eat it.  There is NO WAY Sadie and Gunnar would ever do that.  Impressive!

We also held a costume contest.  I don't have a photo of the winner, but this one was pretty cute too.

My favorite part of the day was the "Super Fun Little Dog Race."  It really was super fun.  There were actually 2 races.  One was for dogs with legs 4" and under and the other was for dogs with legs 4" to 8."  It was hilarious.

Oh, and back to the other animals that were in attendance - they were amazing!  One kiddo brought his hedgehog and another lady had her cat in a carrier (okay, that was a bit much....I don't think the cat was happy about it).  I enjoyed the lamas, who participated in the walk, and the burros (donkeys) who were at one of the vendor booths.

And finally, a quick shot of me and my bestie from work, Laura.  She is the volunteer coordinator at KHS and we get to collaborate and share an office.  I think we make a pretty good team and she makes me laugh every day at the office.