A charity dog walk is scheduled in January to raise money for the Humane Society/SPCA of Sumter County.
Stut Your Mutt will be held at 9 a.m. Jan. 31 at the Villages Polo Fields. The primary sponsor is Buffalo Ridge Animal Hospital.
manager Debbie Smith said she hopes the dog walk becomes an annual event.
Strut Your Mutt will feature live entertainment, obedience tips and agility demonstrations. It also will include a dog parade and the opportunity for pets to sign certificates with paw prints.
The event is free, but dog owners who pay a $25 fee to register online at strutyourmuttthevillages.com will receive a commemorative T-shirt, a bandanna and a goodie bag at the event. Registration fees will be donated to the humane society.
Smith said she ran a similar event for six years in Greenville, S.C., before coming to The Villages.
“It was a high success,” she said. “It was wonderful.”
After a career with a telephone company, Smith said her life was changed by a battle with cancer. She became an event organizer for the American Cancer Society.
Her dog, Relay, named after Relay for Life, died a couple years ago and she now has a smaller dog named Bert. Both terrier mixes, they were adopted from the humane society.
She is seeking other event sponsors at various levels, including leader of the pack, $1,000; hot dog, $750; world class canine, $500; and paw-rific, $250. Vendors will pay $100.
