Tapping into the passion people have for their pets, Dedicated Animal Welfare Group (DAWG) and the Mission Viejo Animal Services Center once again hosted the DAWG Walk & Pet Faire Saturday on the Village Green at Oso Viejo Park. The event, which attracted about 1,000 people, raised $13,280 for homeless animals – about $2,000 more than last year’s event.
The park was blanketed with dogs of all ages, breeds, shapes and sizes – many who had been adopted from the animal shelter. There were K9 Athletes in Action, pet contests and pet and wildlife exhibits. Early in the morning, folks enjoyed a walk with their pets along the Oso Creek Trail. The Pet Faire, which featured local businesses, animal rescues and booths, saw a steady stream of two and four-legged visitors.
Many pet owners enjoyed showing off the talents of their furry family members during the pet contests. Meatball, a sweet bulldog, enjoyed taking a dip in a pool that his owners won in a raffle Saturday. The dog was adopted from the Mission Viejo Animal Services Center about three years ago and received medical care from DAWG.
Volunteers Russ and Elpha Mandell raised $1,300 for the cause, taking the $500 grand prize for the largest amount raised. But the generous couple donated the prize money to DAWG, which is the nonprofit fund-raising arm of the pro-humane Mission Viejo Animal Services Center.
All proceeds will go directly toward providing medical care or aid to the homeless animals at the Mission Viejo Animal Services Center.
For more information about DAWG, visit www.DAWG.org. Information about the Mission Viejo Animal Services Center is available at http://cmvas.org or by calling 949-470-3045.
We attended the annual DAWG walk event and had a marvelous time! All the vendors were gracious and had wonderful pet items displayed for purchase. Exciting raffle gift baskets and many other pet related prizes. A number of vendors gave samples to attendees, which is always a plus. The grass area was kept clean by dog owners and Mission Viejo workers.
Each year the event seems to grow and attendance also grows. Keep up the great work and to all you helped to make DAWG walk another success, Thank You!
Jeri Stephens
First Class Pet Sitting
Mission Viejo