“It’s so close to where we’re already going to be! I mean, how far apart are Vermont and Toronto!?”
About 8 hours. That’s how far.
And that’s how we ended up changing our entire route to attend North America’s Largest Festival for Dogs, Woofstock 2018. We were originally due to spend about 3 weeks in Vermont but shortened it to one week in order to spend 10 days in Canada on the road to Woofstock.
We arrived in Toronto the night before and stayed in an Airbnb only a 15 minute drive from the park where Woofstock was being held. Bright and early on Saturday, May 26, 2018 we headed to Day 1 of Woofstock.
With around 175 vendors, rescues and exhibitors – not to mention the tens of thousands of visitors that Woofstock receives each year – it can be very overwhelming when you arrive. You’re handed an event guide with a map and complete listing of times for talks, exhibitions and more. You also receive a wristband or stamp depending on which day you arrive for. We paid $12 CAD (~$9.25 USD) each for a two-day pass by purchasing them online before arriving. You could buy tickets at the door for $15 CAD (~$11.50 USD).
After seeing a video on Buzzfeed, I was interested in hearing Claudia Hehr the Pet Communicator scheduled at 10:30 on the main stage. Truffles was selected to come up front for a session. While I’m open to experiencing new ideas, I came away a little underwhelmed by Ms. Hehr. She didn’t really say anything that seemed more than just an extensive knowledge of animal behavior. That being said, it was a fun talk, an easy way to start the day and we loved that we got to participate up front.
With so many great vendors around, Truffles got to sample so many wonderful treats. She got all kinds of freebies throughout the day, so many pets and met some fur friends!
One booth we made our way straight to was the Open Farm tent. They were giving away bowls of specially mixed dog food based on your pup’s preferences. Truffles was pretty full by the time we got there from all the treats being given away, but she appreciated the opportunity to have a healthy meal and a seat in their shaded tent.
With so many more things to see, we moved around and checked out the Security Dogs in the Crumps’ Arena, made more dog friends and tried more freebies. We also saw a doxie friend trying some special dog-friendly ice cream and just had to get Truffles a ‘cone’ of her own.
One activity we happily participated in was to sign a petition supporting The Body Shop in trying to end all animal testing. I signed and Truffles sported her beautiful bandana to show her suppawt.
One of the highlights of the weekend was meeting the Celebrity Pups in the Celebrity Dog Tent. On Saturday we met two famous dogs: Manny the Frenchie and Crusoe the Celebrity Dachshund.
Manny prefers to be fawned over by his human fans and I was happy to oblige his desire for affection.
Crusoe on the other hand (…paw?), loves people and puppers so we both were able to spend a few minutes with him. I even got a little kiss back – look close for the little mlem tongue on that Celebrity Dachshund!!
Towards the end of our visit, we made our way outside of the main exhibition area to the small side exhibition area featuring the Open Farm Off Leash area, The Dock Dogs exhibition and the Woofstock VIP Lounge.
We popped into the Open Farm Off Leash area but it just wasn’t the right spot for Truffles at that time. She can be shy around other dogs and really had had a tremendous attitude all day considering the number of activities and dogs around her all day. But it was a great place for dogs of all shapes and sizes to stretch their legs off leash.
We were able to catch some of the Big Air Wave #3 of the Blue Buffalo-sponsored Dock Dogs competition. I took a few photos:
Two of my favorites were of a pup who wasn’t too interested in jumping in after all.
I felt especially fortunate to capture this series of one of the first jumpers.
Finally, before we left it was time. The Woofstock VIP Lounge. Truffles entered a competition for a place in the lounge by sharing Woofstock posters on social media for the week. And she was chosen! She’s always been a VIP to us, but it was very fun to have that celebrated with a list with a bouncer to get in, red carpeted area, specialty beds, a treat bar and swag bag.
The VIP Lounge was the pawfect end to Day 1 of Woofstock 2018. Check back tomorrow for our coverage of Day 2 of North America’s Largest Festival for Dogs!
This looks like it was a blast! My lurcher would have had a blast. The humans looked like they had a blast as well.
It was so fun. I highly recommend putting a trip to it at least once on your pups bucket list 😀