Wiggle Waggle Walkathon

Wiggle Waggle Walkathon

This morning we joined a couple of thousand people and their dogs for the annual Wiggle Waggle Walkathon, sponsored by Cape Talk and Pet Alive. The walk raises funds for the local Cape of Good Hope SPCA whose HQ is in Grassy Park. The entrance fee for adults was R25 – dogs get in for free! And you can participate even if you don’t have a dog.

Two of the presenters of Cape Talk Radio – Aden Thomas and Leigh Bennie – stood on stage before the walk started, explaining a bit about the SPCA and warming us up.

Aden Thomas and Leigh Bennie

Many families seemed to bring along more than one dog; all shapes, colours and sizes were represented, from elegant Great Danes, furry St Bernards, proud Alsations and doe-eyed Rottweilers, to snuffling Toy Poms, huffing and tugging Dachshunds and feisty Jack Russells. And lots of the dogs were dressed for the occasion – poor things…

Frilly dog…

My favourites were definitely the playful Golden Retrievers and easy-going Labradors – I always think of those as REAL dogs. 😉

A pair of beautiful golden retrievers

It was a really sociable event, with people chatting and laughing with each other and dogs sniffing each other’s noses and butts and making tailwagging friends.

The start

Fortunately, it had rained a bit last night, so the oppressive heat of yesterday had dissipated nicely, and the sky stayed cloudy and the wind refreshingly cool.

Winding our way through Tokai

There were plenty of watering stations along the route, with big basins full of water that the dogs could bath in, and small bakkies with drinking water. There were also volunteers thoughtfully handing out bananas, water and coca cola to the human participants, which was much appreciated.

Soli Philander, one of the presenters at Cape Talk, came cruising by in a 4×4, loudly commenting on dogs and their owners, making us laugh and cheering us on: “Come on, come on, you’re halfway there, keep going, you can do it!”

Soli Philander inspiring us

The whole walk was 4.5 km long. For some of the smaller dogs, this was a biiiiig achievement and a few had to be carried the last stretch.

Here, at last, is the finish line! Yay! We’d made it! 🙂

At last, the finish line!

What a wonderful morning – and for such a good cause. We’ll definitely try to part of next year’s event.