His name was Lucky. A black mixed-breed terrier, he was 14 when he died last October.
“I’d never seen another dog that looked like him. He had long skinny legs,” said Leslie Buell, president of the Marysville Dog Owners Group known as M-DOG. “We adopted Lucky at the Everett Animal Shelter. Without Lucky, we wouldn’t have built an off-leash dog park.”
With her husband, former city of Marysville spokesman Doug Buell, and other M-DOG members, she worked with Marysville Parks &Recreation to help create Strawberry Fields for Rover Off-Leash Park. The fenced 3-acre space is in the southeast corner of the Strawberry Fields Athletic Complex at 6100 152nd St. NE in north Marysville.
Since the off-leash park opened in 2008, M-DOG has provided stewardship for it. The group holds work parties at the park the third Saturday of each month. And M-DOG puts on Poochapalooza, Snohomish County’s largest festival for dog lovers and their pets. The annual event raises money to support Strawberry Fields for Rover.
The 10th annual Poochapalooza is scheduled for 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday at Asbery Field near downtown Marysville. Admission is free, but the volunteer group hopes visitors will donate at least $5 to the nonprofit.
Buell said Wednesday that Poochapalooza raised about $3,500 in 2015. In recent years, the money has been used to purchase agility equipment from Dog-On-It Parks, a company that sells items for dog parks, and to install it.
One M-DOG goal this year is replacement of fence posts at Strawberry Fields for Rover. But Saturday will be a day for fun, not time for toil at the off-leash park.
“It has been our pleasure to put on this family-friendly, dog-friendly festival for a decade,” said Buell, 61, who is Poochapalooza’s founder and coordinator.
Among festival highlights will be the Running of the Wieners dachshund races, mixed-breed trophy races, and a Fashions and Rescues Runway Show.
With dressed-up dogs, that spectacle will draw attention to pets available for adoption from area animal rescue groups.
“A lot of people do adopt that day. They’ll take a dog home,” Buell said.
Dogs and humans will strut their stuff during a performance by the Emerald City Canine Freestyle Dancers, a group that combines dance with a dog obedience display.
An exhibition of lure coursing, in which dogs chase simulated prey, will be presented by the Association of Puget Sound Coursing.
The Rainier Agility Team and the Barn Hunt Association will also be there.
“Wag bags” filled with dog products will be given to the first 300 or so Poochapalooza visitors who donate $5. And dozens of vendors will be selling pet items. Last year, Poochapalooza drew about 3,500 people.
For doggies, the Dining Dog Cafe and Bakery in Edmonds is sponsoring a pie-eating contest, and Pupcakes, LLC will host the Dog Dessert Dash. And for the pets’ masters, there will be hot dogs, barbecue sandwiches, kettle corn, ice cream and other treats for purchase.
“Lucky was an inspiration for the whole thing. I was a cat person before we got Lucky,” Buell said. “He left a good legacy. We’ve made a lot of dogs happy with the dog park.”
She and her husband now have two 10-year-old terriers, both from shelters. Lucky taught Buell why people are so attached to their dogs.
“It’s unconditional love,” she said.
Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460; jmuhlstein@heraldnet.com.
Poochapalooza Saturday
The 10th annual Poochapalooza is scheduled for 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday at Asbery Field, 1605 Seventh St., Marysville. Hosted by M-DOG (Marysville Dog Owners Group), it’s a fund-raiser to help support Marysville’s off-leash dog park. Admission is free, but “wag bags” with dog items will be available for first 300 or so visitors donating $5. Donations for dog contests are $5 each. There will be dozens of vendors, snacks for people and pets, dog adoptions, and more.
Information: http://poochapalooza.org/
Learn about M-DOG at: www.m-dog.org/
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