A record 2400 people and 1613 dogs took part in the 16th annual SPCA 567 CapeTalk Wiggle Waggle Walkathon on Sunday 22 November making it the biggest dog walk in the country.
 
The iconic event saw the tranquil suburb of Tokai transformed into a magnificent parade of dogs of all shapes sizes and breeds accompanied by their owners both young and old who collectively helped raise over R120 000 for the Cape of Good Hope (CoGH) SPCA. In addition the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising programme donated R10 to the SPCA for every dog entered.
 
“It was the most incredible and uplifting sight to see so many walkers and their dogs taking over the streets of Tokai in support of the SPCA” said CoGH SPCA Events Manager Juan August.  “We’ve had nothing but compliments from the walkers who revelled in the very special atmosphere created by thousands of dog lovers coming together” he said.
 
Although registration opened two hours before the planned start at 9am the event was delayed by 20 minutes while SPCA volunteers and staff rushed to register the dozens of people who arrived at the School for Maths Science and Technology to take part in the event.
 
Popular 567 CapeTalk presenters Aden Thomas and Soli Philander officially started the 4 5km fun walk with roads along the route closed to traffic giving dogs and their owner’s freedom of the suburb. With the mercury peaking at 26ºC water points every 500m helped ensure both two and four legged-walkers were kept well hydrated along the route.
 
Notwithstanding the huge number of dogs crowded together in one area there were no incidents of fighting and only a couple of dogs needed treatment for heat exhaustion.  PetAlive were also hand to dish out doses of their PetCalm natural remedy which helped dozens of excitable dogs relax into the walk.

To view more photos from the Wiggle Waggle click here