Many animals are born on the streets, where basic survival is a struggle.  Others live their lives in commercial breeding facilities and never know a blanket, a kind touch, or a day without pain.  Some animals are dumped, simply because they are no longer wanted.  All animals deserve love and a good home.
 
On May 30th, Belleville Area Rescue of K-9's (B.A.R.K.), an ambassador for the Purina® Pro Plan® Rally to Rescue™ program, presents their 2nd annual "Paw Festival - Paws on Parade" event at Melvin Price Memorial Park in Swansea, IL.  The event takes place between 10am and 2pm and will feature dog owners and their pooches "strutting their stuff" around the park's walking trail to raise funds for their less fortunate furry friends in the Metro East. 
 
This exciting event will offer many activities for dogs and their owners to enjoy, including   pet contests, pet photographer, live DJ, pet caricaturist, games and prizes, silent auction, raffles, food and drink and much more.  There will also be over fifty vendors on-site, offering everything from pet accessories to gourmet dog treats.  The "Paws on Parade" dog pledge walk will start at 11am, for which participants can win the following prizes for the most money raised: 1st place-TomTom GPS Unit, 2nd place-MP3 Player, 3rd Place-All in one - Printer, Copier, Scanner!
 
Participants can register for the "Paws on Parade" pledge walk in one of four ways: the day of the event at Pavilion #3 ($25), pre-register ($20) online at www.pawfestival.com,  pre-register in person at our B.A.R.K. table at Petsmart in Belleville on the third Saturday of the month or at Petco in Olivette, MO on the first Saturday of the month, or call 618-616-WOOF.  Registration includes a free Rally to Rescue T-shirt and gift certificate for a free dog toy for the first 150 registered in the pledge walk.  Our goal is to make "Paw Festival - Paws on Parade" the largest such event in the Metro East to raise awareness about the many animals in need in our area.
 
All proceeds from "Paw Festival - Paws on Parade" will go to B.A.R.K. so they may continue their work to rescue animals, place them in foster homes and find permanent, loving families.