Want to hang out in a field full of dogs this weekend? Head to Somerville.
The Somerville Dog Festival will celebrate its tenth year on Sunday.
Trum Field will soon be filled with a whole lot of barking and tail-wagging when the grassy expanse plays host to the Somerville Dog Festival on Sunday, Sept. 8.
“There’s usually anywhere between 3,500 and 4,000 people who come to the event,” said Rebecca Waugaman, the event’s organizer. “It’s a big one.”
Throughout the afternoon, pups can navigate a hay maze at “Kibble Quest,” attempt agility exercises in a “Try-It ring,” and learn new skills in coming-when-called, nosework, and weight-pulling sessions. Alternatively, more culturally-inclined canines can watch a performance by the “Fairy Tails Theater,” which will showcase a cast of dogs doing “Cats.”
“It’s a combination of somebody who’s doing narration along with some musical track,” Waugaman said of the festival’s theatrical element. “Then there are always dogs who are kind of acting out the parts.”
Festivalgoers can wander among vendor booths that range from a dog photographer to a pet hotel, and grab a bite from a selection of food trucks. There are also competitions for the best trick and best dressed dog and owner duo, as well as a newly added dance contest.
“We usually have TJ the DJ from 103.3 [AMP Radio] come, and he’s usually the little emcee-slash-judge for the contest,” Waugaman said. “I thought this year it would be fun to introduce a dance contest, and essentially we’ll have them play some music, see which dog does the best little dance, and then they’ll be rewarded with a prize.“
And no, you aren’t restricted from getting in on the festival fun if you don’t have a pet of your own.
“We have lots of people who come by just because they love dogs. I actually had somebody earlier this year who told me it’s one of her top three favorite festivals,” Waugaman said. “And she doesn’t even have a dog.”
Some activities are free, while others request a donation through tickets, sold for a dollar each on the event grounds. With the exception of the 10 tickets requested for pets to complete the “Doggie Fun Zone” course, most of the offerings request two tickets each. All proceeds, according to Waugaman, will benefit the Somerville Foundation for Animals’s CARe Van, a mobile veterinary clinic.
The portable clinic is run by Porter Square Veterinarian’s Dr. Adam Parker and local dog trainer and behavioral consultant Marjie Alonso, who started the Somerville Dog Festival together ten years ago. The project allows them to “provide free vet care to people who are potentially on the verge of homelessness or are homeless in the Greater Boston area,” Waugaman said.
The clinic’s opening is what caused the Massachusetts Veterinary Referral Hospital, where Waugaman is a manager, to come on board with this year’s festival planning.
“We really want pets to be able to stay with their owners and vice versa,” she said. “We want to make sure that we’re here supporting that mission, and this is a really good way for all of us to do that.”
Somerville Dog Festival; Sunday, Sept. 8 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Trum Field, Somerville; free; all ages
