Internationally renowned dog behavior expert Cesar Millan, also known as the Dog Whisperer, was joined by over a thousand dogs and their loyal owners for the Scooby-Doo and Cesar Millan National Family Pack Walk on Sunday, October 30, at Lake Balboa Park in Van Nuys, CA.
The Pack Walk brought together humans and dogs for a day filled with fun activities, games, training and education. The entire experience was geared toward enhancing the relationship between owner and dog, which kicked off with a 1.5-mile Pack Walk around the lake led by Cesar and the beloved Scooby-Doo.
Dyson, along with celebrity pet groomer Marco Lalau of Bubbles Pet Spa, offered free grooming to any medium to long-haired dogs. Owners brought their dogs to the Dyson tent to experience the Groom and DC41. The dogs then received special conditioning sprays and some final skin treatments to polish off the look.
Attendees and their furry friends who needed a beat from the heat took it easy in tented areas like the Mutt-i-grees Reading Lounge, the Monsterpiece Theater screening room,the Scooby Bark-cade gaming room, Barks & Crafts area and more. Other attendees teamed up with their pooches for photo booth sessions, a “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?” themed scavenger hunt, a Halloween doggie costume contest, an off-leash Bone Yard Play Yard, doggie agility demonstrations by Muttley Crew and Urban Mushing, and a meet-and-greet with Scooby and Shaggy costume characters and the Mystery Machine. The West Valley Animal Shelter was also on hand processing pet adoptions. An afternoon raffle awarded over $2,500 in prizes, including a Cesar Millan Training Basket, Scooby-Doo toys and games, a Dyson vacuum, and an iPad sponsored by ScrollMotion.
All proceeds from the National Family Pack Walk event were donated to the Millan Foundation which provides financial support to educational programs and non-profit animal shelters and organizations engaged in the rescuing, rehabilitation and re-homing of abused and abandoned dogs. The Foundation prioritizes funding for spaying and neutering programs to help reduce or eliminate dog overpopulation and has various initiatives, such as “Shelter Stars,” “Spay & Neuter is Nothing to Whisper About,” and the “Mutt-i-grees Curriculum,” which are targeted towards the overall improved well-being of the canine community.
About The Millan Foundation
On Valentine’s Day 2007, Cesar Millan officially established The Millan Foundation with the mission to create and deliver community humane education programs and promote animal welfare by supporting the rescue, rehabilitation, and rehoming of abused and abandoned dogs.
Since its inception The Millan Foundation has been creating lifelong healthy relationships between dogs and people through a series of grants to non-profit animal shelters and rescues, community education programs including The Mutt-i-Grees Curriculum, spay and neuter campaigns and emergency animal rescue through the Daddy’s Emergency Animal Rescue (DEAR) Fund. For more information visit www.millanfoundation.org
