For those of you loyal readers who have been hoping things on this blog would lighten up a bit, be careful what you wish for.  Introducing the lightest topic on the planet: Woofstock 2012, the largest festival for dogs in North America.

The event, held at St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood in Toronto on the weekend of June 9th through 10th, was essentially a gigantic outdoor trade show for all things canine.  If you’re the type of person who invokes thoughts of starving orphans living for less than $1 a day when faced with crowds of people pushing doggy strollers and picking out fifty-dollar bags of holistic dog food for Fifi and Fido, then the event is most likely not your style.  However, if you’re like me and are entertained by the idea of being outside with hundreds of pooches (and free swag) then you’ll find it a perfectly hilarious way to spend a Saturday.

Events included free pet groomings, the opportunity to bathe in a water fountain, an obstacle course and even a woman doing caricatures of dogs and their owners.  Other note-worthy mentions include a vat full of milk bones and fliers promoting websites for dog match-making services.

All in all, however, the day was a success.  Coco left happy, having sniffed hundreds of dog-behinds and now endowed with a bag full of free stuff; food samples, poop bags, a bandana and even a free water dish.  I also had an interesting time.  I learned that such a thing called “Veterinarians Without Borders” exists – although they couldn’t give me a straight answer as to what they actually do.

I am also happy to know that, if I ever happen upon the serious problem of having-so-much-money-I-don’t-know-what-to-do-with-it, there lies an entire industry that tailors dog outfits, including matching footwear (think sandals), for both dog and owner that I could easily fill a spare closet with.  (I’m going to assume that Coco hopes I stay poor enough to never be able to afford to do this).