Hi friends,

I hope you and your dogs are having a great summer. We have lots of activities coming up and hope you can participate in all of them. We're busy planning our great Dog Splash Days event so will keep this newsletter short.

Highlights

1) Coffee socials at Sherwood Dog Park Saturday August 16, 9 - 10:30 am
2) Registration now open for Dog Splash Days Sept 5-7 !!
3) Update on Vineyard Dog Park Mural

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1) Coffee social at Sherwood Dog Park, Saturday August 16th 9 am - 10:30 am
About 40 people and their dogs showed up at Sherwood for a fun evening social on July 15th with lemonade, ice cream, and popsicles. It was great to see that 35 or 40 dogs could all enjoy the park at once without any serious "discussions." We'll be having one more summer social on Saturday, August 16th from 9 to 10:30 am featuring coffee and pastries. No charge, of course.



Photo by Gail Gresham

2) Registration now open for 8th Annual Dog Splash Days Sept 5-7 !!
It's time to sign up your dogs for the annual celebration of the end of summer. We take over the Templeton Community Pool for dogs to amaze us with their athleticism, exuberance, and comic antics. This is the major fundraising event for Vineyard Dog Park - all proceeds benefit the park.

Early bird registration through Sept 3 is $15 per dog and after Sept 3 through event day is $20. You can register through our website with a credit card of your PayPal account or by mail with a check payable to Parks4Pups, PO Box 795, Paso Robles 93447. Please include your desired swim time, phone #, and dog's name with your registration. You can also put your check in the donation box at Vineyard Dog Park to save a stamp.

This year we are bringing back the raffle table with many great items donated by local businesses including Cal Poly Arts, Avila Beach Resort, Trader Joes, Paderewski Festival, Hearst Castle Tour Tickets, lots of wine, and lots more. I hope you'll make a point to buy some raffle tickets and support your local dog park.

And if your dog is not a swimmer, I hope you can attend to watch the show. Bring a picnic lunch, lawn chairs, and prepared to be entertained. No charge to spectators!

Many thanks to our sponsors County Supervisors Frank Mecham and Debbie Arnold, Rabobank of Templeton, Genete Bowen and DogE911, and SLO County Parks. And thank you to photographer Gail Gresham for capturing the great photo for this month's masthead.



3) Update on Vineyard Dog Park Mural
Savannah Reifers, winner of our annual student art contest, is hard at work on this year's mural. I had a chance to see the work in progress and am impressed with the dedication and research going into the project. Her illustration "illuminates" Sirius, the Dog Star, and a wonderfully charming foreground image of of a young girl and her dog stargazing on a moonlight night.

We don't have a completion date but will hope to have a nice unveiling and artist reception at the end of August. Many thanks to Savannah and our supervising artist Brenda Thomason for their efforts. Can't wait to see the result.

See you at the park!
Paula O'Farrell
Parks4Pups
805.239.4437

PS You can get more frequent updates on our activities by visiting our Facebook pages for Sherwood Dog Park and Vineyard Dog Park.