First Woofstock event fills Lakewood Main Street with dogs

Bradenton's Jordan Smith has a special bond with her 2-year-old golden retriever Nala. She described her as a poster golden, always happy and willing to do tricks because she is so smart. 

Most important, she has a love for other dogs and people. 

Woofstock at Lakewood Main Street, which took place April 18, provided a space for all sorts of dog lovers to come together. There were over 30 pet centered vendors, a Puppy Pals Live (as seen on America's Got Talent) show, free pet caricatures and more.

Proceeds from beverage sales are to be donated to Nate's Honor Animal Rescue Center.

Samantha Davis, volunteer and event coordinator at Nate's, said it was a fun way to spread the word of their mission. 

"No matter how big our small events are, we love to get our puppies out there, socialize them and get our name out and change the stigma of what shelter life is," Davis said.

Brittany James is a dog trainer who has been performing with dogs since 2019. For Woofstock, she led all of the dog tricks during the Puppy Pals Live show. She said she especially enjoys performing for pet owners to show what sorts of tricks their dogs might be capable of doing.

"All of these tricks that we do in the show anybody can teach their dogs," James said. "We hope that after they see one of our shows, they go home and work with their own dogs at home and try to stay strengthen that bond and have a little bit of fun." 

Nicole Hackel, the events manager of Lakewood Ranch, said Lakewood Ranch is such a pet loving and dog centered community so they wanted to create a brand new event surrounding that. 

"It's so nice to be able to have everybody come out and bring their pets and enjoy the day," Hackel said. "It benefits a great cause."