Coming back from Woofstock, I’m a little more sunburn, a little more broke and a lot more dog tired. Victor too.

By the time we got to Woofstock, we were one-eighth a million strong. On May 28, 2016 (and the next day), an estimated 150,000 pups and people filled the grounds of Woodbine Park in Toronto, Ontario sniffing, sampling, lure racing, leaping into water and shopping. Lots of shopping.

Woofstock, a semi-annual event, claims to be North America’s largest dog festival. How that’s measured is undetermined, but there is something magical about this outdoor extravaganza. Maybe it’s the time of year – Canadians are thrust into a sudden scorching summer heat after a long cold winter. Or maybe it’s the green space and nearby beach within the country’s most populated city.

Or maybe it’s sheer numbers. There’s a lot of dogs in this here town.

Me and my schnoodle Victor (that should be a folk song) spent the afternoon covering almost every square grassy inch of the festival, but opted not to test our luck in the Dog Lovers Days lure course this time. Mainly because of the heat – and the fact Victor tried it previously and just peed.

He loves to pee as much I love to shop and at Woofstock we get to do both. Wait. What?

Never mind.

Here are a few things we picked up, along with a few new friends we met:

Yup. Victor bought another bow tie from Handmade in the Hammer. This one has cars and fits around his collar.

One cat and one dog so far in my collection from http://www.stickmancreations.com. Handmade from Pewter in Montreal.

Great Jack’s Liver Dog treats made in Canada

So many cute faces, so little time to photograph them all – especially while Victor is pulling me. At Woofstock, you do have to keep the pooches leashed and the poop bags handy. Sure, we are stardust; we are golden, but we’re not free running in this garden. Peace, love and arfiness.

Check out the previous Woofstock coverage from dogtrotting.net. Why miss a year?