Spend some quality time with your furry, four-legged friends while strolling Gulfport's scenic downtown during Get Rescued, a two-part charity event to benefit a range of Florida-based nonprofit animal rescue shelters. The festival features silent auctions and prize drawings, agility demos, microchipping, canine couture and tasty fare for pets and their owners that will surely wag some tails. No pooch to pamper yet? Many of the represented rescue groups, like Save our Strays and Small Paws Rescue, bring foster pets who are ready to be welcomed into a loving, permanent home. Later in the evening, animal lovers are invited to attend a food and wine tasting, and enjoy live entertainment and live and silent auctions at the Historic Gulfport Casino. All proceeds from Get Rescued support the event's 50 participating rescue groups. Sat., March 1: Festival, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Beach Boulevard, downtown Gulfport, free admission, and Tasting, 6:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m., 5500 Shore Blvd. S., Gulfport, $25 per person, GetRescuedInGulfport.com.
This article appears in Feb 27 – Mar 4, 2008.