Petacular

It's always a shame when a proud pet owner has to leave their furry friend behind for a day of shopping at the market. However, in Thompson Falls, leaving behind pets is unnecessary as they are more than welcome at the Thompson Falls market every Saturday throughout the summer.

It's always a shame when a proud pet owner has to leave their furry friend behind for a day of shopping at the market. However, in Thompson Falls, leaving behind pets is unnecessary as they are more than welcome at the Thompson Falls market every Saturday throughout the summer.

These furry friends were even celebrated with their own special day this past Saturday at the first annual Pet Fest.

Pet Fest was created as a way to do something special at the market and since the market is pet friendly, it was only asked that owners clean up after their pets, the first annual Pet Fest was organized. The Pet Fest was met with great success as community members gathered at the market to celebrate all things pet-related. The morning began with a pet parade and over 30 animals, from dogs, cats, goats and even chickens, showed off their strut and marched down Maiden Lane to the market.

"We're really proud the community came together and joined us with this because everyone came together and that's what's really important," said Jackie Burgess, who along with Karen Harlin, organized the Pet Fest to be a special event at the market.

Katrina Campbell, market manager, jumped on board with Harlin and Burgess to get Pet Fest off of the ground as the Thompson Falls market is one of the few markets that welcomes all pets.

Campbell said Thompson Falls Mayor Carla Parks pronounced last weekend as the official Pet Fest weekend for years to come. After seeing the success of Pet Fest this past Saturday, the trio of women have decided to bring it back next year and make it a staple of the market.

Following the pet parade, Huckleberry Hounds Agility Club gave demonstrations as how they have trained the pets to complete an obstacle course. Trainer Jan Manning showed off her dogs' skills followed by her clients ability to lead their dogs through the agility course.

"It's been a lot of fun to show off these demonstrations to people and it's been really fun and we're glad they invited us to come," said Agility Club President Elizabeth Riffle.

There were 11 runners, who took dogs through the course, four of which were young 4-H members.

For more information on the Agility Club that meets every Sunday please visit www.huckleberryhoundsagility.com.

In addition to the demonstrations, the local veterinarian announced the winners of the Biggest Loser Pet competition. Some of the veterinarian's clients competed to see which pet could lose the most weight in a specific time period.

"Our vet did a biggest loser contest for her overweight pets and they've been on a diet for six to eight weeks leading up to today and she gave away prizes for the dogs that lost the most body percentage weight," said Burgess.

Winners for the Biggest Loser were first place for "Patches" owned by Bill and Millie Green. There was a tie for second place between "Brandy," owned by Cinda and Tom Grimm, and "Noodles," owned by Bill and Millie Green. Third place went to "Freckles," owned by Kathy and Jim Hill.

The market will continue throughout the rest of the summer.

For more information on vendors or special events please visit www.thompsonfallsmarket.com.

Questions or comments on this story can be directed to Reporter Danielle Switalski by e-mail at reporter@vp-mi.com or by phone at 826-3402.