Our society is schizophrenic about pets. Some people loathe them, others are indifferent, while for some they are the centre of their lives. And it is unusual for people to cross from one group to another- the lines can be pretty sharply drawn.

But for those in the latter group, this weekend is something special.

An alliance of dog rescue groups and others are coming together to present Pawlooza 2010 at Steve Plunkett’s Fleetwood Farm on Elviage Road, featuring a whole day’s program designed to be of interest to dog lovers.

The organizers have this to say:

“Our festival has almost doubled in size, and we have close to 40 animal rescue/animal welfare groups in attendance this year. In an effort to raise awareness about the growing amount of homeless and neglected pets in Canada (we have) coordinated one of the country’s largest animal rescue gatherings for everything dog-related”.

The festival is a fundraising event for two local not-for-profits, Animal Rescue Foundation and LEADS Employment Services. Pawlooza has attracted close to 40 rescue and non-profit animal welfare groups who are showcasing pets in need of adoption, doing some networking, and helping Pawlooza raise awareness about Canada’s homeless pet epidemic.

The date – the third Saturday in August – has been reserved by the International Society for Animal Rights’ (ISAR) for ‘International Homeless Animals Day’. The day features close to 80 rallies, adopt-a-thons, and events being coordinated across the globe. Pawlooza organizers are expecting upwards of 15,000 animal lovers and their canine companions to be in attendance here in London.

There will also be 125 pet-industry vendors, free samples, pet psychic shows, trick demonstrations, doggie dock diving, trail walking, racing, a doggie DNA lab, cutest dog contests and more.

With Michael O’Sullivan, the Executive Director of the Humane Society of Canada, recently reporting that “each year, in Canada, over 400,000 healthy dogs and cats are killed because there simply aren’t enough homes”, the stage appears to be set for the rescue groups and their adoptable animals to get some much-needed exposure.

Sounds like a lot of fun to me. You can get more information by visiting http://pawlooza.com/.