Dog Day Afternoon

It’s never a ho-hum day at an animal shelter, as Liesl Beckmann of the Humane Society of the South Platte Valley will attest. Though the open-admission shelter mostly sees the usual dogs and cats pass in and out of its doors, that doesn’t mean they don’t also host the occasional rooster or goat. “We’ve even taken in turtles and fish from people who were moving,” she notes. Currently, the shelter is housing about thirty animals, including one rabbit, and has room for dozens more.

Beckmann says the same open-door policy will apply to pets visiting today’s Best of the West Pet Fest, an HSSPV fundraiser that doubles as the closing event for Littleton’s annual Western Welcome Week festivities. Dogs, cats and even lizards are welcome at the fest, which includes family fun for humans and animals alike. Along with live bluegrass and food trucks, “there’s a dog craft table, where you can make painted prints of your dog’s paws,” she adds, and throughout the day, there will be pony rides, disc-dog demonstrations, dancing dogs and dogs in costumes, vying for prizes. And, yes, you can also adopt dogs on site from the agency’s mobile adoption vehicle (and cats, should you so desire).

The pawty runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Aspen Grove, 7301 South Santa Fe Drive in Littleton; admission is free. Find more information at hsspv.org.

Sun., Aug. 17, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., 2014