Hops & Harley event welcomes dogs

By Heidi Kerr-Schlaefer
The Surveyor

Harley is ready for the 3rd annual Hops and Harley fundraiser at Fickel Park this Saturday.
Photo courtesy of City Star Brewing / The Surveyor

This Saturday Fickel Park will be filled with the sounds of happy dogs and happy people. It’s the third annual Hops & Harley, a fundraiser for Colorado Springs-based nonprofit, National Mill Dog Rescue (NMDR).

Each year, City Star Brewing hosts Hops & Harley with the help of a big team of volunteers, many of whom are avid supporters of NMDR.

“At City Star we host benefits in our taproom for various organizations and causes throughout the year, but after our first National Mill Dog Rescue benefit in 2013, City Star’s connection to the organization quickly evolved,” said Whitney Way. “The plight of puppy mill victims and our community’s desire to help to do something has led us to grow Hops & Harley and support NMDR’s mission whenever possible.”

This year’s Hops & Harley is bigger than ever and takes place Saturday, July 11, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The entire day is filled with fun activities for the family and the family dog. The children’s section, run by the Berthoud Community Library District, will offer coloring projects, face painting, games for the toddlers and more.

A dog agility course will be set up on the east side of Fickel Park where demonstrations will be held throughout the day. You can even try out the course with your pup. New this year, a pet/person lookalike show will be held on the main stage in the afternoon. There’s no fee to enter, but entrants must sign up at 1:30 p.m. to participate.

In addition, there will be food trucks, vendors, a silent auction, and City Star Brewing will be serving up their craft beer. The Frank Taggart Trio and Aaron McCloskey Band will entertain the crowds throughout the day.

Of course Harley, the festival’s namesake, a mill dog rescue Chihuahua and a mascot for NMDR, will be at the event as well. He will be available for pictures periodically throughout the day.

“We now brew an award-winning beer every year in Harley’s honor, called Harley’s Honey Wheat,” said Way. “We look forward to this Hops & Harley being another great event with added food options and activities.”

NMDR has pledged to put an end to the cruelty of the commercial dog-breeding industry, more commonly known as puppy milling.

The Humane Society of the United States defines puppy mills as breeding facilities that produce purebred puppies in large numbers. Puppies are then sold, either directly to the public via the Internet, newspaper ads, at the mill itself, or are sold to brokers and pet stores across the country. The documented problems of puppy mills include over breeding, inbreeding, minimal veterinarian care, poor quality of food and shelter, lack of socialization with humans, overcrowded cages, and the killing of unwanted animals.

According to its website, NMDR rescues dogs and works to educate the public on the horrors of puppy mills. Volunteers with NMDR have rescued and placed nearly 10,000 dogs since their founding in 2007, and they have educated hundreds of thousands of people through their website and social media.

One hundred percent of the proceeds of Hops & Harley go directly to NMDR and the 2014 event raised more than $11,000. City Star Brewing and the rest of the event organizers hope to raise $20,000 at this year’s event.