Surf City is pet paradise

Dave Brooks

Every dog has its day. Maggie’s just happens to be Monday.

At the beginning of each week, Maggie heads down to Dog Beach with

owner Scott Basin for an afternoon of catch and socializing. For

Basin, Monday is his second day off from his job as a manager at an

electronics store, but for the Staffordshire terrier, Mondays are a

chance to chase her favorite inflatable soccer ball, meet other dogs

and catch a few ocean waves.

“I would be in huge trouble if I missed a Monday at the beach with

Maggie,” Basin said. “She knows when its time to go because she

practically drops the leash in my lap and races around the house to

find the soccer ball.”

Venice Beach may be the official “Dogtown” of Southern California,

but Huntington Beach is cornering the market, offering the largest

stretch of beach for leash-free dogs in the state.

With summer on its way, interest in dog ownership here is up. The

Orange County Humane Society in Huntington Beach, on Newland Avenue,

just held its Pet Adoptathon to find homes for many of the county’s

unwanted pets, including dogs, cats, rabbits and other random

critters. “Huntington Beach just seems like a really apt place to own

a dog,” pet owner Bruce Henry said while enjoying breakfast with his

English terrier Freckle at the Park Bench Cafe Saturday, an outdoor

Central Park eatery that encourages pet owners to bring their dogs

with them to enjoy morning meals.

“It’s really a combination of all the people who already own dogs

and are open to animals, and the availability of open space for

pets.”

Besides the dog run at the Sports Complex, one of Henry’s favorite

dog spots is Dog Beach, where volunteers are working to raise money

for the Fido Fountain -- a drinking station specially created to

serve the dogs that frequent the mile-long beach between 21st Street

and Seapoint Avenue.

The fountain will include a special ground-level basin for dogs

that automatically refills after a floating mechanism indicates the

water level is too low. Farms use similar devices to keep domestic

animals hydrated.

The new fountain will also alleviate the need for Dog Beach

volunteers to bring in water by hand. Huntington Beach officials have

given a tentative approval on the fountain. Its exact location will

be determined based on existing water lines.

“It’s really just one more step in making this place Doggy

Disneyland,” said Martin Senat of the Friends of Dog Beach

Foundation.

To raise money for the fountain, the Hilton Waterfront Beach

Resort and Preservation Society of Huntington Dog Beach have teamed

up to present a charity dinner and silent auction from 6:30 to 8:30

p.m. Wednesday, May 25, at the resort’s Palm Court restaurant.

Prizes for auction to help meet a fundraising goal of $3,000 to

$4,000 include four outfits worn by Paris Hilton’s Chihuahua,

Tinkerbelle, and signed by the hotel heiress. Participants can also

bid on psychiatric evaluations, obedience lessons, and teeth

whitening (for their dogs).

Dog owners who want to pamper their pets can bid on a suite at the

Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort, which comes with a doggie bed and

dinner for two.

Those still looking to adopt a dog or cat can head over to the

Humane Society at 21632 Newland Ave. in Huntington Beach. Shelter

manager Lisa del Campo said visitors should bring identification and

proof that their lease, if renting, allows for a pet.

“They should also bring their pets to the shelter to see how the

animals will get along,” del Campo cautioned.

Del Campo said rescuing a dog or cat from a shelter can be much

more rewarding than purchasing an animal at a pet store.

“Dogs know when they’ve been rescued from a shelter and they

really appreciate it,” Campo said. “It’s an opportunity to really

make a difference in an animal’s life.”