Woofstock rocks Middlebury green

Author: Polly Johnson

Last Saturday morning on Middlebury's Town Green was no ordinary weekend morning. On Oct. 1, dogs and their owners took over the town from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., all in the name of participating in the Addison County Humane Society's (ACHS) annual Woofstock. The event brought together dogs and their owners from all over Addison County and raised a large amount of money for the ACHS.

Middlebury's Volunteer Services Organization (VSO) spread the Woofstock word to the Middlebury campus, and although only a small number of Middlebury students turned out, the day brought together the College and the community - and the dogs of both.

For Woofstock participants who did not have their own dogs to accompany them, the ACHS offered their sheltered dogs for the three hours. Erin Bell '06, co-president of VSO and Woofstock attendee, said, "The only thing I regret about the event is that not all the dogs from the Humane Society were taken out to walk. A lot of townsfolk opted to bring their own pets instead of picking one up at the shelter, so it was sad that a lot of the homeless dogs remained cooped up during an event meant to benefit them."

The festival included a half-mile walk for the participants and their pooches, as well as an agility course, pet contests, a "dig-like-a-dog" for prizes contest and animal care and rescue information tables. Sandra Farrell, the president and adoption coordinator for Greyhound Rescue of Vermont, provided some interesting facts about her role at Woofstock. She said she was there "to let people know about the organization. If they're interested, we send them information [...] our basic mission is to introduce people to the breed." She described greyhounds as excellent therapy dogs that are calm and great for homes.

I attended Woofstock with a friend, and we shared the leash of a dog from ACHS that we picked up prior to the event. Bo - our loving pup for three hours - could not have been happier to see the light of day and escape from his small space at the Humane Society. However, he seemed to be a little too excited and was unable to participate in the half-mile walk, due to his tendencies to pull out of his leash and drag us around. We sat happily on a bench, coaxing Bo to sit by feeding him the entire bag of treats given to us.

Sarah Shaikh '07, my dog-walking-partner-in-crime, enjoyed the unorthodox Saturday. "This was my first year participating in Woofstock and I really enjoyed being involved in an extended Middlebury community event," she said. "Everyone from town was really friendly and extremely interested in learning about our experience with Bo. They were also very helpful when Bo became a bit of a handful. I never realized that the town was so involved in the Humane Society and it was truly awesome to be a part of the event!"

The warm sunny afternoon was complemented by pizza from American Flatbread, music by Cooper and Lavoie and the good vibes emulating from the crowd. Prizes were awarded to the participants who had earned the most in pledge money and everyone who had raised at least $50 won a free ACHS T-shirt.

Bell summed up the event, "I guess I would have to say that despite the constant barking of my dog, I loved getting the chance to spend the afternoon outside in the amazing weather. A lot of awareness and money was raised, so hopefully these dogs (and cats and rabbits) won't remain cooped up much longer!"