Have you ever seen two hundred basset hounds in one place, howling and slobbering and padding along…read moreon their squat little legs? If your answer is no, then you haven't been to the annual Basset Hound Spring Games, put on by the Basset Hound Rescue of Southern California in Arcadia County Park. Also, you haven't really lived.
BHRSC is a fantastic rescue organization (visit their website at http://bhrsc.org). Matt B. and I adopted our son Duke through them just over a year ago, and we've been pleased to keep in touch with them and their priceless network of hounds online and through events like this one. The Spring Games is their biggest fundraiser, and it is a blast to attend.
Think of the Spring Games as the basset hound Olympics - events run all day, from 10AM to 3PM, and they include a drooling contest, a kissing contest, a treat toss, and something vaguely aquatic called "synchronized swimming." Our Duke is not a talented dog, but he and his best friend The Stig ran the boxer short relay race together. This involved owners getting boxers on their stubborn hounds and having them run across the field. Duke did not perform very well. The Stig, on the other hand, caught treats and wagged his tail like a champion, placing in both those competitions and earning ribbons for his proud parents. He also took full advantage of the agility course during the lunch hour.
At some point, there was a competition for longest ears, and out of curiosity, we entered our dog. His ears come in at 8"3/4 - "slightly above average," we were assured (TWSS, am I right?). There were also titles for biggest paws and lowest ground clearance. God I love bassets.
Other events included a parade of adoptable hounds, as well as a parade of alumni hounds, in which we participated. There was also a costume contest - Duke and The Stig went as Batman and Superman, but ultimately lost to a creative homemade costume of a "baby basset-net."
In between events, we walked around and met dozens of other dogs. It was such a trip to see them all in one place, and I took something like two hundred pictures. We also looked around all the various tents, many of them hawking basset-themed goods. We bought a tasteful wooden abstract basset statuette that is now sitting on top of our bookcase. It cost $15 and the proceeds went to the charity. There was also a silent auction, as well as a raffle, and we bought $30 worth of raffle tickets. No dice, but a good cause. I was a little heartbroken I didn't win the basset wrapping paper though - I must have put twenty tickets on that prize. We ate hot dogs for lunch, which were sort of bad somehow, but it was nice that we didn't have to leave the park and miss out on any hound action.
The Spring Games cost $20 to enter (for your first basset - $10 for each additional), and we donated more on top as BHRSC is the best. If it cost $200 I would still go every year. For a basset lover, Spring Games is heaven, and God almighty, I love those hounds.