Yappy hour at the Ritz-Carlton

Thursday evening I attended a wonderful event that a good friend of mine invited me to.  I hadn't heard of it and after a bit of research; I was very excited to visit the canine function.  Yappy hour at the Ritz-Carlton; sound fancy?  Well it was.  Not your ordinary dog gathering; it was held at the upscale Ritz-Carlton Hotel.  Unfortunately I'd not been before so I parked across the street.  They have valet which I will definitely take advantage of at the next Yappy Hour.

I met my friend and her poodle out front of the Hotel; from there we were directed to follow the paw prints, cute.  It took us on a walk through the grounds and out onto a large grass area over looking the ocean.  The view was spectacular and the grounds, beautiful.  We were met by several people who explained about the event and told us where we could find everything.  There was also a gentleman with a tray of dog cookies which...........................if you can believe Luke loved.  We actually headed back there after a bit for another and Luke wolfed that down as well.  Excellent cookies; Luke says a definite 4 paws up.

There were lots of dogs to meet.

Some came dressed up.

Some even had their own driver.

The event is a fundraiser for the Pet Project Foundation; partial proceeds from the event go directly to help animals.  Wine, cocktails and beer was available for purchase and the featured vineyard was Mutt Lynch Winery.   They also had food available for the humans starting at 4.00 for their delicious tacos that we had.  Cookies for the dogs and flavored water; yes flavored water prepared by one of the chefs at the Ritz was complimentary.  They had bacon, cheese, beef, veggie, chicken and plain available.  I had a sniff of the chicken water and it smelled amazing; and as I was told that it was fit for human consumption I thought about it but went for the orange water instead.  Both Luke and his friend preferred the orange water that was set out for the humans as well, go figure.

Note on the far right, the orange water.  Below Luke and his friend Sally enjoy a glass.  

Mutt Lynch wines

On top of the cookies, flavored water, wine and goodies for the humans they also offered massages.  Both for  humans and the dogs; below this tall, dark and handsome receives his massage.  Tell me he is not loving this?

We got there early and after we arrived it was a steady stream of people and dogs coming in.  I was actually very surprised at the turnout; even as we were leaving there were still folks coming in with their dogs.

Yappy Hours is offered Thursday - May 5, June 2, July 7, August 4, and September 1 from 5 to 8 p.m.   There were a great number of dogs and the only squabble I heard was Luke having words with another male who was intact.  All the dogs were wonderfully behaved and having a great time socializing; as it seemed the humans were as well.  A great event; I will definitely attend next month.  Nice to step out for a glass of wine surrounded by breathtaking scenery and bring your dog to enjoy it as well.