Wuff Da! Dogs take over Ballard park

Geeky Swedes Ballard

Well over a hundred dogs packed Ballard Commons Park today for “Wuff Da,” a dog show that handed out prizes for dozens of categories.

“Well, we weren’t sure how many folks would show up today. They’re all here,” said Tim Hunter, who was emcee of the event. “The line stretches from here to Fremont,” he joked of the registration line (above).

It all began with this post by Julie Albright on My Ballard. “After seeing everyone’s adorable pics of their pooches online, I say we have a Cutest Dog in Ballard Contest,” she wrote. Others agreed, selecting dates and volunteering as judges. Three weeks later, a huge crowd packed Ballard Commons Park for the event. “I think this is fantastic,” said Joyce Golden, who entered her poodle mix into the contest. “My gosh, I can’t believe all the people that are here.”

Organizers split the competition into small, medium and large dogs — each had to be from Ballard — and owners paraded their pooches around the Ballard Commons fountain. (Watch video of the event by SeattleTimes.com).

Judges evaluated the dogs on a number of categories including oldest, youngest, cutest, prettiest smile, funniest looking and longest tail.

This dog, named Zeus, won the prize for the funniest-looking big dog.

These cute little Golden Retrievers won the “youngest puppy” award. Their names: Riley Cyrus and Reba McIntyre.

Some dogs didn’t waste their time digging into their prizes, which included bones, treats and tennis balls provided by a long list of Ballard sponsors. “Thanks also to all of the dog owners who brought down their adorable pooches; it was incredible to see a lot of Ballard’s amazing dogs in one place,” said organizer Julie Albright, who said she’s considering doing it again next year. “We’ve never had anything like this in Ballard,” said Ron Embree, who’s lived in Ballard for 40 years. “It’s excellent. We love it!”

More photos below…





See more photos and video snapped from folks who attended the event.

Geeky Swedes

The founders of My Ballard

39 thoughts to “Wuff Da! Dogs take over Ballard park”

  1. Hi! What a great time! I took about 150 pictures, but don't know how to post them on here. If anyone was there with their dog and saw me taking photos of them (I was wearing the blue plaid cowboy shirt, with my dog Romeo) you can email me and I can send you a copy! Kim/Frolic Photography: Frolic_Photography@yahoo.com

  4. if you use flickr you can create a pool and everyone can just put their pictures into the pool, or merely tag them with “Wuuf Da”

  7. I'm glad everyone had a great time. We were actually disappointed because we couldn't hear anything the announcer said and missed the entire section our dog could have participated in. Our dog was just happy to meet everyone, but we would have liked to have been able to participate more actively. I hope this will become an annual event so that we can join in on the fun next year.

  8. Since you didn't get to participate….well, I have a couple of prizes left over AND some goodies, so…just tell me what kind of dog you have, and I'll meet you and get you some stuff.

    Sorry about the PA- the Parks & Rec PA wasn't that great.

  9. oh I don't use flickr, I used photobucket but anyway I sent some photos to the Geeky Swedes so I think they will be posting a bunch!

  10. I would like to thank our sponsors: All the Best Petcare, Bark, Camelion, Ballard Home Comforts, Ballard Market, Johnny's Shoe Repair, Ahimisa Dog Training, Trader Joe's, Romanza, Sandy Matthews, masseuse, and The Ryther Center, Please support our Ballard Sponsors!

    I'd also like to thank the Seattle Dept. of Parks & Rec, Jonathan Matthews Design, Erik Witzoe who designed the poster, Ingrid, Anne, Angelina and Ben, our judges, Tim Hunter our MC, Ballard Chamber of Commerce for letting us use their insurance, all the great folks at the Dept. of Parks, the nice folks from PAWS, Aiko Vail and her dog Porter from German Shepherd Search Dogs, and everyone who helped out. We raised $30 for Old Dog Haven- not a ton of money, but then, it wasn't a fundraiser. We contributed all our leftover bags to the Ballard Community Center, and I'll be taking all the leftover goodies to the Seattle Humane Society and PAWS.

    IF anyone DIDN'T get a prize or a goodie bag, I have some goodie bags left over and prizes for
    A Chihahua
    A small white dog
    A Westie
    A Scottie
    A dog that looks like “Benji;”

    Contact me, and meet me at Tully's and I'll give you some goodies.

    Please shop at our sponsor's venue's….in the depths of a recession they opened their hearts and their wallets to provide prizes and goodies for the dogs of Ballard.

    Thank you all for coming!

  12. My wife and I had a wonderful time. It was great fun to see all the dogs. I'm going to post some pictures to my flickr site later this evening (“Holy Outlaw”). Thank you, Jules2, for organizing and thanks to all the sponsors.

  13. Such beautiful controlled chaos! The PA system was barely audible but I was having so much fun trying to get pics with my cell phone (and trying NOT to pet any dogs – didn't need to have my cat mad at me) that it mattered not.
    Apparently, it was also my sister's birthday today. So I had mom and sis meet me down there. The cuddly pups were a nice birthday addition for her.
    Thank you, Jules! And also thank you to the volunteer judges and the sponsors. This was fun!!!!

  14. I believe I deserve a prize for NOT dognapping any dogs…all too adorable. It would have been nice if the Times had interviewed me…but there you go.

    If anyone DIDN'T get a prize or a goodie bag, contact me.

  16. Well, Mr (or Ms) Crabby Pants, I myself am a cat owner…(owner? Feeder and provider of services more like) I spent 3 weeks doing this, more of my own money than an unemployed person should, and yes, I still think the dog owners of Ballard deserve a good time. So there.

    I think we're all open to any free community event that you would like to put on. (cats? ferrets? hamsters? gerbils? Exotic birds?)

  17. Thanks to everyone who worked to make this dog day happen. It was a great community event but had to leave before it was over and was wondering how it ended up (my husband and dog hung around but he – the husband -wasn't really paying much attention). I watched the video the Seattle Times had and when Angela (I think) was discussing some winners, got to see my dog while she mentioned the “Best Rin Tin Tin Look-Alike” and was curious if he was that dog. Are you going to post any results? ;-)

  22. Wonderful photos!

    I'll bet that all the dogs, and many of their humans, slept pretty soundly last night. ;-)

    Zeus – you are NOT “Funny Looking” – you are a damn fine Boxer! And don't you fergit it!

  24. I haven't even seen the video yet! hahahaha It was me…I have no idea what video coincided with what I said. I know the “Rin Tin Tin Look alike” claimed their prize yesterday, though. They came up and made their presence known, at the time we announced it.

  25. I don't think he's “funny looking”, per se. He just has a quizzical boxer face. I love his “funny face.” Please don't take “funny face” to heart…remember, Audrey Hepburn was told she had a “Funny Face” in the movie!! :)

  30. Thanks Jules and the crew for putting this on. We had a great time and even won a prize!
    I was surprised at just how many dogs and people showed up for this. Good job!

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