Thousands of pups panted and played at Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks’ inaugural Bark Bash dog festival Saturday afternoon.
Attendees could browse wares from 80 vendors, watch dog agility shows, hop on a paddleboard with their pooch, splash in a lake and socialize with other dogs all at the Prairie Oaks Metro Park.
Hilliard resident Sean Colopy brought his bernadoodle, Bailey, to Bark Bash after he heard about it from a friend. He was particularly interested in the event’s dog beach, where dogs chased each other, swam and fetched balls into the afternoon.
“(Bailey) loves the water. He’s kind of an addict, if you will,” Colopy said.
The Bark Bash replaced Metro Parks’ old annual dog event, WAG! Fest. A marketing company Metro Parks worked with to put on WAG! Fest could not participate this year, so the parks decided to put on a new festival, Metro Parks Visitor Engagement Manager Jill Snyder said.
“We knew the people of central Ohio were going to want an event. We knew that it was an important part of our summers, and so we really wanted to make sure that we kept the tradition alive,” she said.