Actress Megan Blake, her dog, Super Smiley
(that’s his REAL name), and Arden Moore at the
San Diego Party in 2011. Blake travels all over the country
doing the Super Smiley Flash Mob to raise money and
awareness for adopting mutts. Photo provided
By Arden Moore
In the pet world, I happily wear many collars — author, animal behavior consultant, radio show host and my personal favorite: dog party expert. I travel all over North America to unleash the true party animal inside people — and their canine chums.
I’ve staged parties for 500 in Kauai at the annual Love a Dog Day and for 800-plus mutt-loving members of the military at a Navy base in San Diego.
I’ve even demonstrated a dog party with my Husky-golden retriever mix Chipper before cameras in a CNN-Headline News studio in New York City.
No matter if the party is big or small, I focus on three goals: to sneak in good doggy manners in a fun setting, to benefit a worthy pet charity and to give party-goers the rare chance to revel in the moment without the disruptions or demands of phone calls, emails or business appointments.
I’m no psychologist, but I believe in — and have witnessed — the power of purposeful play for both dogs and people. That’s why I boldly created a canine holiday last year called National Dog Party Day.™
We staged simultaneous parties in San Diego and New York City. And, this year — June 22 to be exact — I invite all you South Florida pet lovers to participate in our newest party site: Miami Beach.
The party takes place at The Chalk Lounge in Miami Beach from 7 to 10 p.m. with proceeds to benefit Paws 4 You Rescue. Tickets are $25 apiece and you can register now by visiting www.dogpartyday.com/miami for details and party rules.
I promise you three hours of jam-packed fun activities, plenty of great eats, surprise celebrity appearances and the opportunity to win mega prizes generously donated by many sponsors. Here is a sneak peek at a few games that will be unleashed at the three party sites on June 22:
K9 Karaoke: Move over, American Idol. Take a seat, The Voice. The hottest musical competition these days calls for competitors to serenade their canine pals.
Like many of you, I confess that I create jingles or sing lyrics from my favorite songs to my dogs, Chipper and Cleo. At the National Dog Party Day, we invite you to grab the mike and belt out a favorite song that captures your connection with your dog in hopes of being crowned top K9 crooner. Start rehearsing now, because a major prize will be awarded.
Snoopy Says: This is a variation of the popular child’s game called Simon Says.
At our National Dog Party Day venues, we instruct guests to line up with their leashed dogs. The rules are simple: the people-dog teams must comply with our commands whenever we say, “Snoopy says.” For example, “Snoopy says sit your dog.” People must get their dogs to sit within 5 seconds. But if we simply say, “Sit your dog,” people who do so are eliminated from the competition. The winning team is the one that heeds all “Snoopy says” commands.
Canine Musical Chairs: For this first-rate party favorite, we arrange hula hoops in a circle on the ground, spaced three feet apart. We start with one fewer hula hoop than the number of participants. We instruct the participants to walk single-file counterclockwise around the hula hoops, as dog-themed music plays. When the music abruptly stops, each guest must get their dog to sit inside a hula hoop and each person must have at least one foot inside the hula hoop. Too slow — or too stubborn — dogs are eliminated. We continue until we have one dog and owner left standing (er, sitting).
Bottom line: Dogs are born party animals and they learn best in a fun setting. And, we two-leggers rarely get the chance to truly live in the moment.
National Dog Party Day celebrates that connection we have with our dogs — and raises money for great causes. Each year, I expand with more venues. Who knows? Maybe in 2013, we can stage a party in Palm Beach County.
I hope you will join us on June 22.
After all, when it comes to party trends, dog parties win paws down! For more information, please visit www.dogpartyday.com.
Arden Moore, founder of FourLeggedLife.com, is an animal behavior consultant, editor, author, professional speaker and certified pet first aid instructor. She happily shares her home with two dogs, two cats and one overworked vacuum cleaner. Tune in to her Oh Behave! show on PetLifeRadio.com and learn more by visiting www.fourleggedlife.com.
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