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Organizers of Solomon’s Howl-o-ween Dog Parade seeking community support, sponsorship

August 1, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Calling all dog lovers!

A brand-new event is coming to Orangeville with a focus on celebrating the community’s furry four-legged friends.

Solomon’s Howl-o-ween Dog Parade is coming to Lions Sports Park on Oct. 20, where participants and their dogs dress up in Halloween costumes and fundraise for Autism Dog Services. The event will also feature a penny auction and Paw Print Campaign.

“I think this is going to be fun. We’ve never had an event like this in Orangeville,” said Vivian Petho, who’s helping organize the event. “People love their dogs and people love Halloween, dressing up themselves and their dogs. We think this would be fun for families to come out to and have a fun time seeing dogs in funny costumes, having a good afternoon.”

The parade is being organized by Petho, her husband David Vahey, and her son Solomon Vahey. The family needs help with ensuring it is successful, as they’re hoping to make it an annual event. They are currently looking for sponsors, donations for the penny auction, and people to sign up as individuals or teams, as they gear up for the event over the next few months. Those interested can email SolomonsHowloweenDogParade@gmail.com.

Petho’s family got their service dog, Major, in December 2023 from Autism Dog Services and he’s had an incredible impact on Petho’s son Solomon, who has autism and is prone to wandering.

“I think a lot of what the service dog does is intangible. Yes, directly, it helps him with his safety when we’re walking together because he holds on to the [service dog’s] handle and that way he’s not wandering away. But we see Solomon is a lot more confident in just going out in the world with his service dog. He seems just more willing to try things that he wasn’t ever willing to try before,” Petho explained.

Before Major was assigned to Solomon as his service animal, he was never a dog person.

“He wasn’t a kid who liked dogs. He’s actually scared of most dogs. Dogs usually terrify him because they bark, they’re loud,” Petho noted. “Our dog doesn’t bark. I’ve heard him bark twice since we’ve had so far, and that’s one of Solomon’s triggers. He just can’t have barking dogs; they will send him running.”

Petho’s family is organizing the fundraiser as a way of thanking and giving back to Autism Dog Services.

“The families themselves don’t actually pay for the service dog, it’s all done through donations and fundraising that these dogs end up going out to children and adults who need them,” she explained.

It costs Autism Dog Services roughly $25,000 to train one service animal, so holding fundraisers like Solomon’s Howl-o-ween Dog Parade is essential to keep the organization successful.

“From the point a dog comes from a litter, handpicked from various breeders, goes through all the training, and all the work it takes to get to being a service dog – it costs a lot of money,” Petho said.

On average, it takes two years to train a service dog, and only a handful of them will pass the final exams to become service animals.

“There’s very few out of every graduating class,” Petho remarked. “The dogs that don’t qualify as service dogs end up going out into the community as other things… we met one dog at our graduation ceremony, for example, that was for canine response with an ambulance service.”

If the dog doesn’t have the right temperament, it is often adopted as a regular pet after failing the final exam.

Petho noted the importance of supporting the work of Autism Dog Services.

“You’re helping a really great cause,” she said. “The service dog has really made an impact in my child’s life, and I’d love to see that money goes back to the hard-working volunteers, all the puppy raisers and the trainers who make it possible that a dog grows up and gets to be a service dog.”

Attendees of the dog parade are encouraged to bring dog-related donations on the day of the event to be donated to the Orangeville Food Bank.

Anyone who doesn’t own a dog but would still like to support Solomon’s Howl-o-ween Dog Parade can give a $5 donation to participate in the event’s Paw Print Campaign.

Paws with the names of donors will be affixed to a wall at the event.

Petho said she hopes the dog parade is successful and becomes an annual event in the community.

“What we’re looking for is for people to come out, to create teams, and walk together as a group,” Petho explained. “They could walk as families or they can walk as businesses and such.”

Solomon’s Howl-o-ween Dog Parade will run from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 20 at Lions Sports Park at 120 Diane Drive, Orangeville.

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