Paw Prints on the Canal returned to Northampton’s Canal Park for its 15th year on Sunday, June 9. The annual event, featuring over 100 vendors, benefits the Northampton Borough Police Department K-9 Unit and gives dozens of local animal rescues the opportunity to raise awareness.
The event has become an annual tradition, bringing families and their four-legged friends to the borough from the Lehigh Valley and beyond. Attendees could watch K-9 demos from the Northampton Borough police, protect their pets with an on-site rabies and microchip clinic, and participate in the fan-favorite Sharp-Dressed Pet Contest (which even featured some feline friends this year). The winners of this year’s Sharp-Dressed Pet Contest were: Jim Shelanick with his sidecar dog Riley the goldendoodle in first place; Kristina Ford with Oakley, a mixed breed, in second place; and Sarah VanDunk with Bowie, a coonhound mix and Baio, a lab/dachshund mix, in third place.
There were over 100 vendors at this year’s event, including rescues and shelters, crafters, local businesses and animal hospitals. Attendees could pick up homemade treats for their dogs or cats, shop for toys from AfFORDable Pet Center and meet some of the adorable adoptables looking for homes from rescues like Outcast Rescue and Foxy’s Cradle.
Other rescues included Freedom First Rescue, Feline Good Cat Rescue, the French Bulldog Rescue Network, Fund-a-Bull Bulldogs in Rescue, Harnessed to Hope Northern Breed Rescue, Jax’s Labrador Retriever Rescue and the Lehigh Valley Humane Society, among dozens of others. Rescues had the chance to take to the stage throughout the day to introduce some of their adoptables and share their mission.
There were plenty of vendors for pet parents to peruse too, from crafters selling everything from homemade candles and woodworking to food trucks serving up empanadas, cheesesteaks and even ice cream sundaes.
“Team Paw Prints wishes to express sincere gratitude to everyone who has been supporting our event for 15 years. It takes a team effort to put this large event together and I am very grateful for my team, volunteers, vendors and the public for supporting such a worthy cause,” said Candi Lynn, event coordinator.
In 2023, the event raised over $13,000 for the Northampton K-9 Unit. Since its founding, over $90,000 has been raised by the event.
