Dogs and their parents flocked to Bayside Pet Resort – Osprey last Sunday for Sarasota’s tropical party for people and pets, The Bow Wow Luau. A new breed of fundraisers for animal rescue groups is finding its footing by appealing to everyday dog lovers.
More wag then swag, parties like The Bow Wow Luau encourage attendees to have fun, bring their own dog and celebrate the human animal bond. Satchel’s Last Resort was the beneficiary of this year’s event.
Angeline Pantazis, Administrative Director of Bayside Pet Resort, where the Luau was hosted told us “This year’s Luau was another terrific success. Bayside Pet Resort Osprey hosted more than 200 pet parents and their four-legged children for a day of music, fun and fund-raising. Part of our core mission is to be of service to our neighbors and friends in our community and beyond. Mr. & Mrs. Huff and the Bayside team is proud of our efforts over the last two years to assist Satchel’s in finding new homes for their shelter dogs and to provide funds to save more pets.”
Adoptable dogs were also on site for event, and became subjects for Connie Summers, a Sarasota professional photographer.
“I love attending local events like this! Supporting local rescue is something that I like to do and Satchel’s does great work for our community” Connie explained.
“The Bow Wow Luau SRQ was just a 3 hour event and during that time we raised $12,500 to enable us to rescue-rehab-rehome pets in desperate need of medical and behavioral care to fulfill their dreams of finding a loving home and family,” Iris Eastman, Executive Director of Satchel’s. Last Resort. “In spite of the fact that attendees were only present for those few afternoon hours, the organization and planning was much, much more than that! We are extremely grateful to Bayside Pet Resort and their team and Sarasota Dog for creating such a successful event”.
Mary Lou Davidson from SarasotaDog.com added, “It was our pleasure to help with this community event, it really was a team effort. The support from local businesses was tremendous! A big thanks to Wilde Honda Sarasota, Spa Alexauna, The Artful Canine and all of the donors but especially to our host Bayside Pet Resort.