This past Sunday the Friends of Fair Park hosted it’s annual Dog Bowl. Apparently it’s been going on for a few years and this is first I’ve heard about it. However, it could not have come at a better time. Since I have an puppy fanatic on my hands, the Dog Bowl peaked my interest.
The dog bowl is a FREE event open to the public and held at the historic Cotton Bowl Stadium inside Fair Park. For those not from the area, Fair Park is the home of the famous State Fair of Texas, Cotton Bowl Stadium, Dallas Childrens Aquarium, Dallas Music Hall, Amphetheater, several museums, and lots of events held year round.
The Dog Bowl was held on the ground of the Cotton Bowl Stadium. The football field was turned into one giant dog park for 4 hours. There were several vendors lined up on each of the football field selling treats and snacks specifically for the pooches, balloon animals for the kids, pet services, pet adoption, rescue groups, gear and toys, and just about anything you can think of for you pet. In the center of the field were little plastic wading pools filled with water for the dogs to “swim” in, cool off, or just have a little fun. Misting stations surrounded the endzones, just in case it got a little too hot. It is Texas after all. 🙂 Snow cones and snacks for the adults, pet/owner look a like contests, crafts for kids and pets, and a live band were all there for everyone to enjoy.
We are pet loving family and have 2 dogs of our own. While my boy dog Rusty is not exactly socialable, Roxxie, my princess pup, would have loved to attend. However, I really wanted Blake to be able to enjoy this experience. He is such a huge puppy lover and he was so excited to go and see all these dogs, that it was all he could talk about every day until the day finally came. So, we decided to leave the pups at home for this one.
Since this was our first time attending, we weren’t sure exactly what to expect, however we were pleasantly surprised at how fabulous this event was! There was dogs everywhere. Every size, shape, color, breed. Every pup you could imagine. Blake was in heaven. Dogs would come up to him and just greet him like they were his own. We let them pick out some special treats for the dogs, some pup cakes and cookies. We spent about an hour there and managed to pet and meet around 50 dogs, even though I would guess there were hundreds of dogs there at one time and more at the gates waiting to get in. This was absolutely a must see event and so glad we attended. There was a mishap between two dogs and Blake got caught in the middle and we were all a little frightened for a bit, but everyone was so nice and helpful and came to check on us and him and showered Blake with balloons and puppy kisses and toys. It was very nice and sweet of them.
We are going to have to make this a yearly event to go to and if you are in the area it a great event to attend!
