Meet your new best friend this weekend
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In her past few months of volunteering in the overcrowded South Los Angeles animal shelter, dog lover Shelley Mack has been saddened by the hordes of adoptable animals that never make it out alive. The main reason, Mack conjectures, is that even the most well-intentioned animal lovers don’t often take trips the pound.
Meet Blaze (#A0964146), a 3-year-old spayed female border collie mix from the West L.A. shelter, at the Best Friends Pet Adoption Festival. Blaze’s son Shaggy (#A0964145) will be there too.
So starting this Saturday, she and other volunteers will be taking shelter dogs to the people by hosting a mobile adoption fair in Larchmont Village in Los Angeles. ‘If we get the animals out to them, it’s not as emotional and it’s easier for them to make a connection to the animals,’ Mack says. Instead of being in the confines of a kennel, about 15 dogs on leashes in the open air will court potential companions.
The event is this Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the parking lot outside the Barking Lot pet supply store at 336 N. Larchmont Blvd. A second fair is planned for Oct. 25.
Larchmont is not the only place to find a new friend this weekend.
If you’re in L.A. proper, you can head over to the La Brea Tar Pits (and bring your dog) for the 1- to 2-mile Strut Your Mutt walk benefiting the Best Friends Animal Society. Register in advance online for $25, or on the day of the event for $30 (registration starts at 8 a.m.; walk begins at 9). There will be prizes and ‘Strut Your Mutt’ T-shirts.
Meet #A3884153, an 8-year-old female golden retriever who’s loved by the volunteers at the Castaic shelter, at Bow-Wows & Meows.
Following the walk, Best Friends Animal Society’s Fall Pet Adoption Festival, also at the Tar Pits, begins at 11 a.m. and runs until 4 p.m. The event will feature adoptable pets (including rabbits and birds) from more than 60 local shelters and rescue groups -- it’s the largest pet adoption event in the world.
Even if you’re not in the market for a new pet, you’ll have lots to do at the festival -- from agility, flyball and Frisbee demonstrations to pet-related vendors to a children’s activity pavilion. There’s even a Shelter Dog Parade.
The La Brea Tar Pits are at 5801 Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile district.
If you’re in the Santa Clarita Valley, celebrate your love of pets at the Bow-Wows & Meows Pet Fair in Newhall. Bring a furry friend or meet a new one (the place will be crawling with adoptable pets from L.A. County shelters and rescue groups like New Leash on Life).
Meet Princess (#3888428), a 2-year-old spayed poodle from the Downey shelter, at Bow-Wows & Meows.
Also at the festival: agility, flyball, Frisbee, and Schutzhund demonstrations, vendors, food for you andyour pet, and even pet psychics (yes, we’re serious). And you certainly won’t want to miss the Fun Dog Show, where dogs compete in categories like largest ears, mystery mutt, best vocalist, silly pet trick, most spots and most physically challenged.
Bow-Wows & Meows begins at 11a.m. and runs until 4 p.m. at William S. Hart park, located at 24151 N. San Fernando Road in Newhall.
-- Lindsay Barnett and Tony Barboza
Photo credits: Top, courtesy of the Los Angeles Department of Animal Services; center and bottom, courtesy of Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control.
