Doggie’s day out in Mumbai!

If pooches could talk, they’d probably croon to the Irene Cara anthem What A Feeling for there’s a treat in store for them — with everything from digging into doggie treats to showing off their furry best on a ramp, from posing with their pet parents for a pictures to having themselves etched in a caricature and receiving an award.

The show — Dog A’Fair — is a first for the city. FarzanaContractor, whose brainchild the show is, explains, “The ones held earlier mostly attracted breeders and with this we’re having a motley of pet lovers, food companies, stalls for pet accessories and more. Unfortunately, Mumbai isn’t a very dog-friendly city; I’m hoping to change that! We put a small notice on Facebook and got several callers in from far-flung suburbs of Mumbai as well as people coming down from Delhi and Pune.Amongst Mumbaikars, Nita Ambani’s son Akash with his pet, Priya Dutt with her Siberian Husky, Milind, Mukul and mum Hema Deora with their pug Muddy, along with Bittu Sahgal, Cyrus Broacha and Shiamak Davar with their pet dogs will be attending.”

Designer Maheka Mirpuri can’t wait to take her own canine there. “I’m looking forward to having my baby Vodkaa (her Shih-Tzu) meet other dogs and chat with the other owners. I think it’s going to be a fun-filled time,” she says.           

While Dr Sangeeta Vengsarker will present talks on pet care, there will be ‘Dance with Your Dog’ and ‘Run a Dog-A-Thon’ contests and pooches can get their caricatures done (the patient ones, obviously!).

In addition, pictures with pets can be taken and put on mugs or T-shirts. There are pooch accessories and a special Dog Pond, where dogs can be purchased. To add cheer to the evening, a barbecue and wine stall will take place alongside the show. There are Dog Awards too. “We plan to honour those who have done a lot for the world of dogs,” adds Farzana.