Man’s best friend to strut his furry stuff at fashion show
St.. Vincent College has gone to the dogs. But it’s not Westminster or the American Kennel Club putting on the show. Man’s best friend will be strutting his stuff in style on the catwalk at Latrobe’s St. Vincent College on Sunday. Attendees will be in store for a paw-tapping, tail-wagging good time.The Pet Adoption League is playing host to the first annual “Strut Your Mutt” Canine Fashion Review and Grooming Competition.
This event is being held to kick off “Be Kind to Animals” week, May 2-8.
“We are very excited about this event. It’s the first of its kind in our area. We are looking forward to the public’s response and support of the Pet Adoption League,” said Bobbi Kramer, coordinator of the event.
Kramer of Everson and her friend Sue Pal, decided to design a fund-raiser for the Pet Adoption League, which is a non-profit, no-kill animal shelter located in Westmoreland County.
“We thought this would be a very creative event, and we want to show off our dogs from the shelter,” Kramer said.
Owners will strut their fine four-legged friends down the catwalk in the first competition, the Fashion Review.
Dogs will be featured styled in their paw-sitively best attire. Some will be performing their best talents and tricks.
Categories in the Fashion Review include: Best Behaved, Most Original Costume, Most Talented, Best Personality, Best Look-a-Like (owner and dog) and Best of Show.
The audience will judge each dog and vote on the “top dog,” who will surely be hounded by the paw-parazzi upon winning.
In the second competition, each registered groomer will cut and style one of the Pet Adoption League dogs. The groomer and the dog will parade in front of the audience and a panel of judges.
Audience members will get to see each dog before the groomer begins the cut and style and then will see the end product at the conclusion of the day.
This truly will be an “extreme makeover” for the pooches, who will be polished, primped and pampered.
“We want to demonstrate that our shelter dogs can be just as beautiful and adoptable as dogs from pet stores and breeders,” Kramer said.
The top groomer will receive $50 and a well-earned trophy.
“We anticipate at least 20 individuals in each competition. The momentum is building, and we are getting a very good response from groomers in Fayette, Westmoreland, Allegheny and Greene counties,” said Kramer.
In addition to the competitions, vendors with unique creative canine concoctions as well as pooch programs, services, training tips and demonstrations will be on hand for the event.
“The American Red Cross will be demonstrating emergency first aid training for pets. Deborah Kazimer will show a video and give a presentation titled, ‘Caring for Your Handicapped Pet: A Holistic Approach,'” Kramer said.
Kramer also noted that rescue clubs will be on hand at the event with some of their dogs.
“A rescue club,” explained Kramer, “is an organization that adopts a specific breed of dog. For example, WAGS Rescue Club will be at the event. WAGS solely adopts golden retrievers and keeps them until they can place them with loving families.”
The mistress of ceremonies for the event is Trisha Pittman, traffic anchor for WPXI-TV News.
“I heard Trisha was an animal lover and supporter of local animal causes,” Kramer said. “We decided to call her and see if she would support our event. She was very pleased we contacted her and enthusiastically agreed to be our mistress of ceremonies. We are so pleased to have her.”
Dr. Frank Aiello, a Scottdale dentist and canine enthusiast, will give the introduction at the event. A roving doggie talent scout will be scanning the crowd of canines to choose the next “Eddie,” “Lassie” or “Sandy.”
“We are all really very excited about the event. You see the AKC (American Kennel Club) competitions on television. Well, this is not going to be like that. We are planning a day of fun and entertainment with our pooches. We have already started planning for 2005,” Kramer said. The fundraiser begins at 11:30 a.m., with pet vendor demonstrations and shopping.
The Fashion Review and Grooming Competition will begin at 1 p.m.
There is a small fee for tickets at the door. Children 12 and under are admitted free of charge.
All proceeds from the event benefit the Pet Adoption League.
For more information, contact Kramer at 724-887-7278.