Things to Do Between Now and Halloween with Spot

Looking for somewhere to show-off Spot's new costume? Here are some great places:

Tuesday, 10/20

• Petsmart Halloween Photos and Contest - 6PM-8PM. Pets and their parents will model their favorite Halloween costumes during PetSmart's® annual Howl-O-Ween Costume Contest and Photo Event. The free event will include a costumed pet parade and a Best Pet Costume contest. Winners of the contest are selected by the audience and receive PetSmart gift cards worth $20 for first place, $10 for second place and $5 for third place. The first pets to arrive at the event receive free goodie bags filled with treats and coupons. Pet parents capture the excitement of the night with a digital photo and Halloween-themed frame for $4.95 with their PetPerks® card. Don't forget to upload your favorite Halloween picture to win more great prizes:http://corporate.petsmart.com/public-relations/halloween/events.php.

Saturday, 10/24

• Barks'nBubbles Fairfax Grand Opening. Free doggie caricatures (11-2:00) demonstrations, give-aways and more!From 10AM to 4PM & Sunday, October 25 from Noon-4 PM at 11725 Lee Highway, #A-17A, Fairfax, VA. For more information: http://www.barknbubblesdogwash.com/.


• Barktoberfest Music & Pet Lovers Festival. 3 stages/9 bands, food, games, silent auction, vendors--pets welcome! Admission is free. From Noon to 6PM (rain date: 10/25) at Melodee Music 46077 Lake Center Plaza, Sterling, VA. For more information: http://www.barktoberfest.org./
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• Save Our Siberians - Siberspace Rescue Fund (SOS-SRF) - Come Watch Mike Set a Dog Biscuit Eating World Record! Benefit will be held on Saturday October 17th from 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm. Mike Squier will take pledge for every organic Doggy Kitchen 2 1/4" Bone shaped biscuit he can eat in 5 minutes. Event will be held at the Reston Dog Park.


• Howl-o-ween Party - Join Club Pooche in Columbia, MD from 2PM to 4PM. For more information: www.clubpooche.com.

Sunday, 10/25

• Barks'nBubbles Fairfax Grand Opening. Kiddie doggie show, give-aways and more!From Noon - 4PM at 11725 Lee Highway, #A-17A, Fairfax, VA. For more information: http://www.barknbubblesdogwash.com/fairfax


• Del Ray Halloween Parade. Parade begins at 2PM, pet registration at 1:30. Awards for best pet costume. For more information: http://www.delraycitizen.org/news_details.php?action=fullnews&showcomments=1&id=83


• Howl-o-Ween Party. Join Red Dog Spa from 1PM to 3PM for a costume contest, prizes, raffle, and lots of fun. From 1PM to 3PM at Red Dog Spa in Fairfax. For more information: http://www.reddogspa.como/.

Tuesday, 10/27

• Spooktacular Canine Happy Hour. WALR fundraiser at Tommy Joe's Restaurant in Bethesda, MD. Entrance fee is $10. Costume contest, drink specials, raffles, and outdoor heaters! For more information: http://www.tommyjoes.com/specials.htm.

Wednesday, 10/28

• 2009 Spooky Pooch Costume Contest. Sponsored by GoodDogz.org. Entry fee is $20 and includes walking in the 63rd annual Vienna halloween parade. Prizes will be awarded to the Spookiest Pooch, Most Creative Costume, and Best Owner/Dog Combo. For more information: http://www.gooddogz.org/index.php/content/view/114/162/.


• Halloween Celebration Day. From Noon to 5PM at the Wylie Wagg Middleburg store. Drop in any time for our Halloween pet costume contest (winners will be chosen from photos we take). Enjoy festive treats for people and pets! For more information: http://www.wyliewagg.com/.

Thursday, 10/29

• Hallo-WOOF Party. From 5PM to 8PM, Wylie Wagg Tysons store. Mingle with friends while enjoying festive treats for two- and four-legged friends! Costumes encouraged for you and your pet! For more information: http://www.wyliewagg.com/.


• Doggie Yappy Hour Halloween. Join Hotel Monaco in Old Town Alexandria from 5PM to 8PM for their Halloween themed yappy hour. Prizes will be awarded in the following categories: Most Glamorous, Best Dressed Couple, and Top Dog. Food and drinks available from Jackson 20. For more information: http://www.doggiehappyhour.com/.


• Raw Food Seminar. Join Red Dog Spa (without your dog) to learn about a raw food diet for you dog. Samples will be given out to try at home. For more information: http://www.reddogspa.com.

Saturday, 10/31

• Dog Costume Parade @ Herndon Town Green


• Dog Costume Parade @ Fairfax Corner


• Halloween Open House Reston PetSmart

Things to Do This Weekend - October 17th and 18th

Saturday, October 17th

• Save Our Siberians - Siberspace Rescue Fund (SOS-SRF) - Come Watch Mike Set a Dog Biscuit Eating World Record! Benefit will be held on Saturday October 17th from 2:30 pm to 4:00 pm. Mike Squier will take pledge for every organic Doggy Kitchen 2 1/4" Bone shaped biscuit he can eat in 5 minutes. Event will be held at the Reston Dog Park.

• McLean Pet Expo (McLean Central Park) - Held from 11 am - 5 pm at the McLean Community Center.

• Hounds on the Town - Recall Review- From 11 am to 12 pm at Manassas Battlefield. Hosted by The Animal House.

• Charity Dog Wash supporting Autism Speaks - From 11:00 am - 3:00 pm at Bark and Bubbles in Herndon.

• BARCStoberfest is Baltimore's Best Celebration for Party Animals! - The Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter (BARCS) will host the 5th annual BARCStoberfest including the "Strut Your Mutt" Walk on Saturday October 17th in Patterson Park (corner of Eastern & Linwood Streets) from 11a.m. to 4p.m. The Baltimore Animal Rescue & Care Shelter (BARCS)

Sunday, October 18th

• Dog Days in Downtown Leesburg - Will be held from 12 pm - 4 pm Downtown Leesburg. featuring a variety of dog-related products, services, and dog-related not-for-profit organizations. Included are dog rescue and adoption organizations, pet sitters, pet photographers, veterinarians, trainers, groomers, doggie boutiques and more. **Halloween Costume Contest.*** For more info

Places to take Spot on Saturday

October is full of fun activities for you and Spot. Besides all the pet friendly street fairs (like Reston's Oktoberfest), corn maze's, pumpkin patches, and vineyards, here are a few events geared to your dog.

Saturday, 10/10

4th Annual Human Society Walk for the Animals. Celebrate the animals in your life and care for those who do not yet have a home at the Walk for the Animals. Proceeds help end pet homelessness by providing for adoption, spay/neuter, and humane education programs of the Washington Humane Society (WHS) and The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). Come out to the National Mall on Saturday. More information can be found at: http://action.humanesociety.org/site/TR?fr_id=1040&pg=entry

Canine Country Jamboree. Auctions, off-leash area, face painting for the kids. For more information visit: http://www.doggonenatural.com/jamboree2008/.

3rd Annual K-9 Karnival. Join Lost Dog Rescue at Three Dog Farm for a day of sheep herding and swimming in the pond. For more information visit: http://www.k9-karnival.org/2009/K9_Karnival.html.

Things to Do This Weekend - October 3rd and 4th

Saturday, October 3rd

• 8th Annual Mid-Atlantic Dachshund Phest - Come watch the weiner dog races, take your pups picture with Santa, enter into a Halloween contest, and come see hundreds of dachshunds under the same roof. The event lasts from 10AM to 3:30 at the Prince William Fair Grounds. For more info - http://www.doxphest.org/
  

Sunday, October 4th

• Blessing of the Animals at the National Cathedral - Bring Spot for a brief prayer service followed by individual blessings in the courtyard located at the steps of the National Cathedral, Wisconsin Avenue side. Service begins at 2:30PM. For more information visit: http://www.nationalcathedral.org. Also, dogs are always welcome to run the grounds of the National Cathedral any day of the week.

• Paws for a Cause 3K Walk - Join Fairfax Pets on Wheels for their 14th Annual Paws for a Cause 3K Walk starting at Weber's in Fairfax at noon. For more information visit: http://www.fpow.org/events/paws.html.

• HART's Dog Walk and Homecoming - Join Heart for their 4th Annual Dog Walk. The 1 mile walk takes place at Bull Run Regional Park. There will be live music and activities for both dogs and kids. For more information visit: http://www.hart90.org/Events/UpcomingEvents.aspx.
  

  
  

Things to do with Spot this weekend - 8/21 - 8/23

All weekend:
Quiet Rivers Park - Take Spot for a swim at the dog beach and for a run in the shaded dog park at Quiet Rivers in Annapolis, MD.

Brunch with Spot - Relax at Art and Soul or Pat Troy's and order a treat for Spot.

Boat Cruises - Take Spot on a cruise, try Potomac Riverboat Company or Harbor Queen

Saturday, 8/22:
Smushnose Dog Meetup - Pugs, Bostons, Frenchies, and English Bull Dogs will meet-up at 11AM at Shirlington Dog Park. To join the meet-up group visit: http://www.meetup.com/smushnoses-shirlington-dogpark.

Dog Days of Summer - Join the Fauquier SPCA Animal Sheltor for homemade ice cream for the dogs and humans, games, and a training class.

Bark for Life - Join Spot and I as we walk for the cure in Reston, VA.

Sunday, 8/23:
Caring Hands Vet - Bring Spot for a day of pet contests, photos, a silent auction, and food.

Things to Do with Spot Tomorrow

If you are looking for something to do on Sunday with Spot, check out the Dog Days at Great Country Farms:

Dog Days Peach and Sun Flower Fest

Pick peaches, enjoy live music, peach slushies and pies, pond for the dogs to swim in, and plenty of space to run around in. It's also super kid friendly, with hayrides and a petting zoo. If you head out there on Sunday, don't forget to stop at Bluemont Vineyards, which is also dog friendly. Fore more information check out: http://www.greatcountryfarms.com

Canine Fitness Challenge

Calling All Couch Potatoes... Your dog could win a fitness makeover!
NOVADog Magazine is holding a Canine Fitness Challenge. The winner will participate in a 6-month diet and exercise regimen. They will receive:

• Six free months of a balanced diet delivered direct to your door from Canine Caterers.
• A free personalized fitness and exercise plan from DogOn Fitness.
• Free consultation and weigh-in visits at one of Caring Hands Veterinary facilities.
• Photo shoots from Paws and Claws Photography.
• Free pampering from Bark N Bubbles dog wash.

Entry Deadline: August 15th

Send a photo of your dog to mailto:challenge@novadogmagazine.com For more information visit: http://www.novadogmagazine.com/fitnesschallenge.html

Barkley Square and Del Ray

Last night we stopped by Alexandria's eclectic, dog friendly Del Ray neighborhood - full of cute shops and restaurants, a throw-back style butcher shop and pharmacy, and of course Dairy Godmothers. Mt Vernon Street was alive with baby strollers and dogs and First Thursday tables dotted the side walks boasting marketing material and treats for humans and dogs.

We stopped by Barkley Square Bakery for a yappy hour benefiting the Animal Welfare League of Alexandra. It drew a pretty good crowd of young professionals looking

for a place to have a glass or wine or beer and hang-out with friends and their dogs.

We went inside Barkley Square to check out the assortment of freshly baked dog treats and dog accessories and went down the street to Thai Peppers for dinner. The pups enjoyed

rawhide bones under the tree lights while we chowed down on pad thai and spring rolls.

We moved on to Dairy Godmothers where we bought the dogs pumpkin and banana puppy pops (dog crack). Patches (aka Spot) took any distraction to quickly steal bites of the other dogs ice

cream.

Overall, it was a fund outing, while in Del Ray make sure you swing by the butcher shop to pick up a dog bone and to Dairy Godmothers to stock up on doggie squirrels and pops.

Photos courtesy of Natalie Medina.

Puppy Cake

Last week while looking for events that may of interest, I came across http://www.puppycake.com/ Being the sucker for treats for Patches, I ordered the cake mix, sprinkles, and the bone shaped cupcake pan. Inbetween conference calls today I made the banana cupcakes.

From the start Patches could sense that I was making something for him and his dog park friends. He spent 26 minutes starring at my oven as they baked. After they cooled I applied the plain yogurt icing and added sprinkles. Patches went nuts over the piece I gave him. Once at the dog park I gave each of the dogs a piece. The reactions to the cupcakes was huge, every one of the dogs LOVED it.

Thing to Do With Spot - 8/4 - 8/9

Looking for something fun to do this week that can include your pup, here are some of our top picks:

Thursday, 8/5

Pub Dog and Walk. Join the Columbia Dogs on the Go for a walk around Sewells Ochard and then have a beer or three at Pub Dog.

Yappy Hour at Park Hyatt. Join the Washington Humane Society and the Park Hyatt for the last Canines and Corks Happy Hour of the season. The event is $10 and includes two drinks and dog treats.

Yappy Hour at Hotel Monaco. Join Hotel Monaco for a yappy hour in the court yard in Old Town Alexandria. This is a must attend.

Yappy Hour at Barkley Square. Join Ask Miss A, the Animal Welfare League, and Barkley Square Bakery for a Yappy Hour. After the Yappy Hour move on o Diary Godmothers for custard and doggie ice cream.

Friday, 8/6

Yappy Hour at Adams Mill Bar and Grill. See Yappy Hour sidebar for details.

Saturday, 8/7

Yappy Hour at Union Pub. See Yappy Hour sidebar for details.

Sunday, 8/8

Beginner Hike at VA State Arboretum and Winery. Trip to Bluemont Vineyard followed by an off leash open meadow walk into the sunset at VA's State Arboretum.

Paws n' Pedals. Join the K9 Hiking group for a 3.5 mile bike ride.

Don't forget that most of the vineyards in Virginia, and stores in Reston, Annapolis, and Alexandria are dog friendly. If all else fails, plan a day trip to Annapolis - spend the morning at Dog Beach at Quiet Rivers Park, take a water taxi, and have lunch outside at one of the many restaurants downtown.