Dog skating at the RDS

Photo: Kevin O’Gorman.

Photo: Kevin O’Gorman.

With some 20% of Irish homes owning a dog and 14% having a cat, this year’s Pet Expo, held at the RDS in October, was sure to be a big success.

Under new management and now in its tenth year, the weekend kicked off with a bumper Saturday crowd that beat the previous year’s two days combined. NewsFour went along on the Sunday to get a flavour of what pet-related pleasure was on offer.

Apart from the numerous stands dedicated to every breed of dog under the sun, there was a petting farm, world of birds, grooming village, vets corner and reptile zoo. And not wanting to ignore the nation’s legion of loyal cat lovers, the organisers staged the Dublin championship cat show in conjunction with the Siamese and All Breeds Cat Club of Ireland. But it was man’s best friend, the dog, who took pride of place on centre stage as star of the show.

A wise man once said, you haven’t really lived until you’ve seen a bulldog on a skateboard, and how right he was. That’s one more thing off my bucket list anyway and a definite highlight of the show. It was also great to see the good people over at Wonder Paws take their highly trained dogs through the agility course, something that was open for the public to try with their own pets.

Photo: Kevin O’Gorman.

Photo: Kevin O’Gorman.

An amateur Crufts-style canine show helped raise funds for Dogs for the Disabled and our old friends over at Irish Therapy Dogs were on hand to introduce their pet pooches and promote their charitable endeavours.

The expo proved a great venue for animal fanatics to come together and show their love for cuddly creatures of all kinds. But remember that a pet is for life, not just for Christmas.

By Paul O’Rourke