Puppy Dog Picnic

Wanna Go on a Picnic?

Join us at Hamilton's first downtown festival just for dog lovers! A community picnic designed for you, your dog, and all of your dog's friends.

With our community partner Dog-Friendly Hamilton, we are taking over Strachan Linear Park on Saturday, August 29th, turning it into a dog-friendly village festival. Picture local vendors, yummy eats, fun and games, photo ops, prizes and more... alongside 80 dog-friendly picnic blankets (that you can reserve for free!)

Meet neighbours, make friends, and celebrate dog-friendly space and community - with Hamilton pups as a natural ice breaker!

At the Picnic you'll find:

• Food vendors with yummy treats for you in the cul-de-sac at the end of Strachan St East
• Pet vendors (including treats for your pup!) and dog-friendly fun near the Mary St Pedestrian Bridge
• 80 free picnic blankets set up between John & Ferguson, with 3 time slots available for your group to enjoy a picnic
• Much more than we can list here!

How Does a Puppy Dog Picnic Work?

Book a free picnic blanket for your group. We provide the blanket and stake for securing your pup's leash. Your spot is yours for a full 2-hour seating with a limit of 6 humans and 2 dogs at each blanket spot. Be sure to read and review the Event Liability Waiver before completing your reservation!

Choose a blanket near your friends, or book multiple blankets for your group. Contact us directly (info@dogfriendlyhamilton.ca) to book 4 or more blankets, or if you want to host a large group meetup at the picnic.

Weather Information:

Weather will be monitored by event staff leading up to and during the event. Should a potentially extreme or unsafe weather situation arise, the event staff will decide to monitor, postpone or cancel the event. If the decision is made to delay or cancel the event, you will be notified by email or by an announcement at the event.

We have set Saturday, September 19th as the rain date, in case the weather forecast is not suitable for a picnic. We will notify all registered attendees by August 26th if the event will be postponed.

Parking Information:

Nearby parking is available but limited, along Strachan St E, as well as in the lot near John St N and Strachan St E. We encourage all attendees to consider alternative transportation to the event, such as walking, biking, taking the bus or car-pooling.

General Event Information:

• Every dog attending the event must be up to day on all required vaccinations, including Rabies, and Parvovirus (DHPP/DAPP).
• Please keep your pup leashed during the entire event and remember to never leave them alone at your picnic spot.
• You do not need to have or bring a dog to the picnic to attend – all community members are welcome!
• We’ll have volunteer Ruff-erees and Event Ambassadors roaming the event to support attendees and their pups with extra poop-bags, and wayfinding.
• Dog-Friendly Hamilton will be photographing and video recording throughout the event, including all attendees, their pups and any minors.

Enjoy dog-friendly activities and vendors for you and your pup - or just chill on at your blanket spot!

This event is possible thanks to the support from the City of Hamilton's Downtown Hamilton Creative Placemaking Grant, as well as support by our partners, sponsors and volunteers!