We received free entry to this event courtesy of a competition hosted by Hampshire Pet Fair
This isn’t an event I’d heard of before but I’d seen it advertised on social media little bit before the competition was launched and had thought it looked like a nice day out. I went with R and Little T plus Severus and Rascal and it was held in the grounds of Rookesbury Park. Parking was charged at a rate of £6 per car and was on a farmers field next to the venue. We had arrived reasonably early so didn’t have too far to walk but given the hot weather at the time, the ground was very dry, dusty but also uneven meaning that it could be challenging to push a baby in a pushchair if it didn’t have good wheels but I don’t think there was anything the organisers could have done to change that.
The event itself was well spread out with several areas with activities and stands which meant that on a whole, it never really felt too cramped, even around the food stalls which can often happen at events like this. We found there was a nice range of food stalls and although we had brought a picnic with us, we were able to get ourselves a nice treat in the mid afternoon. There were paddling pools dotted around the site too which was essential on a hot day and a marquee had been provided near the bulk of the food stands too which I was particularly impressed by.
There was a nice range of animals on show but because we had the dogs with us, we weren’t able to visit the cats or the exotics but since Severus is terrified of cats, I wasn’t overly concerned about that. Despite this restriction though, we were still able to enjoy most of the animals there. We were also pleased to see that a breed meet up was scheduled for chihuahuas as they are often overlooked for the breed meet ups at this sort of event but sadly we were the only people who had showed up at the designated meeting place and time.
Severus and Rascal took part in a well run fun dog show with both boys coming away with a rosette and a goody bag. From a dog owner’s perspective, it was nice to see more trainers at this event than just simply stalls selling very similar types of merchandise. I also welcomed the opportunity to speak to Moore’s Orthopaedic about Luxating Patella as Severus sadly had this condition in both of his knees. Whilst he doesn’t currently need surgery for this condition, it’s nice to know that there are orthopaedic specialists available without needing to travel too far.
This was a lovely little event and we would happily go again, even without the dogs.