Mother Nature finally cooperated for a Forsyth County animal event.
After having to be postponed from a previous date in May due to thunderstorms, the Mutts & More Festival saw sunny skies and temperatures in the high 80s on Sunday.
A fundraiser and community awareness event for the Humane Society of Forsyth County, the festival was rescheduled to Father’s Day.
Lance White, president of the organization, said while numbers were slightly down from the 2012 event, which was successfully held in May, Sunday’s festival was a success.
“We had probably around 5,000 people come out throughout the day,” White said. “That’s down from last year when we had about 10,000, but with it being on Father’s day, we were still pleased.”
White said the event featured about a dozen different animal rescue groups from around north Georgia.
Leaders had hoped to meet a goal of 100 dog and cat adoptions, but only 26 animals found homes.
“But any time animals find their forever homes, we’re always very happy,” White said.
Besides the animal rescue groups, dozens of food and product vendors also attended the event.
There were also plenty of family-friendly games and activities for dads and children to take part in together, such as a number of inflatables and a “dunk your dad” booth.
White said leaders had toyed with the idea of holding the event every Father’s Day, but said after Sunday’s turnout and hot temperatures, they would probably go back to a May date for 2014.
“June is really a little too hot, especially for the animals,” he said. “So we probably will go back to May since it’s cooler and we’re not competing with any holiday.”
Despite some disappointments, he added that the event, which raised about $18,000 for the Humane Society, was successful.
“Overall, we were really pleased with how everything turned out,” he said.