An afternoon of fun is being unleashed at Gillies Lake this weekend.
The first-ever Big Bark in the Park is on Saturday, June 3 from noon to 2 p.m. The dog walk and fundraiser is supporting the Timmins and District Humane Society and St. John's Ambulance Therapy Dogs.
“There’s a costume contest, there’s going to be prizes for the best-dressed dog. We’re hoping that the owners match the dogs so it will be even more fun for us. We’ll have a bunch of different prizes, there’s a draw to for anybody who shows up where they can get free dog food for a year,” said Jess Wilson, who owns the Hollinger Court and Timmins Square Pet Value stores with her husband Chris.
To participate, bring your furry friend to the park on Saturday afternoon. All dogs must be leashed. If you're looking to add to your fur family, the humane society is hoping to bring some of the dogs looking for forever homes.
There will also be face painting, a barbecue, and a draw to win a year's supply of dog food from Pet Valu.
Organizers are aiming to attract 200-250 people.
“I would like to see this grow year over year. I think that we have the opportunity to make this grow, I think we have the opportunity to get other partners, other local vendors … we just want to support animals in our community,” said Chris.
The humane society is very grateful to be one of the local groups being supported by the fundraiser.
As a charity, executive director Lynn Michaud said the bulk of their funding is through adoptions and fundraising.
There are always financial pressures at the facility. One of the biggest is medical expenses.
This week, they had an extremely underweight and dehydrated cat arrive. It was on IV fluids to get stronger so that staff could do blood work to learn more about what's going on. A dog that went through major orthopedic surgery was also recently surrendered because the family couldn't afford to bring him to the vet.
"I could go on for the next hour about cases of medicals that come through that we’re dealing with constantly,” she said.
On average, the shelter is housing 90-100 animals per day. That includes all animals such as dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, reptiles and rats.
The humane society will be down at Gillies Lake this weekend for the fundraiser.
“We're hoping to bring some of our dogs that are up for adoption and some of the dogs that have been adopted so that we can showcase the wonderful animals that we have. Because often there’s a stigma with our pets — that they’re broken, that they’re damaged, that they’re sick. We do get those animals, but it’s not because of their fault, it’s because we as humans have failed them,” she said.
