It was a “paw-ty” and families were raising the “woof” on Tuesday morning at Duane R. Harte Park in River Village for the launch of the city’s newest “Trail Tails and Wagging Tails: A Storytime Pet Adoption Event.”
Hosted by the Santa Clarita Public Library in partnership with the Castaic Animal Care Center, over 100 guests enjoyed story time with a few special four-legged guests: Aurora, Laddie, Oreo and Bubba.
In order to promote more adoptions at the Castaic Animal Care Center, which is challenged by a high quantity of animals, the city released the fifth volume of Sammy Stories titled “They Call it Puppy Love” and it follows the city’s mascot, Sammy Clarita, through a journey of finding his “furever” friend.
In the short story, Sammy Clarita meets numerous local dogs, including one with Fire Station 107 named Echo, and Dewey who is a Sheriff’s K-9. His mission is to find a dog for himself, eventually making his way to the local shelter where he adopts a “big, brown, and white bundle of energy,” as described in the story, named Biscuit.
To make the experience more engaging for the children, the four dogs up for adoption greeted families throughout the morning event, and received pets, snacks, and a few hugs. Families also participated in other forms of fun such as dancing.
Karen Broussard was greeting families with a 5-year-old Siberian husky named Oreo. As she finished feeding the black-and-white-coated dog a treat, she stated that even with events held at the shelter, many of the dogs in their cages can be “stir crazy.”
“They’re jumping and people walk right by. When they’re out on leashes they show their true personality and behavior,” which is why it’s important to have collaborative community outreach events, she said, for potential adopters to really see the dogs in a more relaxed environment.
Kerri Sheffield and her two children, 1-year-old Nina and 3-year-old Casen, walked over to pet Oreo as she lay on the fresh green grass.
“They love dogs,” Sheffield said, which is one of the reasons she chose to bring her children over to experience the morning event, along with the nice weather and fun time, she added.
Something like this “gives the community a chance to bring the kids out and explore two different things at one time. Have story time, see dogs, and hopefully adopt a dog if you’re able to. We’d love to have more things like this to do with the kids, that are family-friendly and get out of the house.”
Sheffield added that they read Sammy Clarita’s “They Call it Puppy Love” ahead of the event, which Casen really loved, she said.
“This is so great, it helps us bring more people in and be aware of our Care Center,” said Kelsey Tarleton, volunteer program coordinator for the center. Three out of the four dogs during the event came into the center as surrenders, which happens way too often she said.
Tarleton encouraged residents interested in adopting to visit the center which is open Mondays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. or check online and social media for dogs and cats available for adoption.
