Throwing dog park a bone

COSTA MESA — Vera Viana stood at the Costa Mesa Bark Park Saturday afternoon, dodging drops of water as her dog, Mitzu, shook off the bath she had had a few seconds earlier.

The 8-year-old Shih Tzu had long, scraggly black and white hair, which meant Viana would have to pay a visit later that day to the groomer.

Still, Viana, who lives in Costa Mesa, wouldn’t stop at much to support the Bark Park, where she has taken her dogs — three total, to date — for the last 11 years.

“I just do it for the park,” she said, holding tight to the leash as Mitzu let fly another layer of drops.

Saturday morning and afternoon, the Bark Park hosted its 11th annual Bath’Stille Day Dog Wash and Vendor Fair, a fundraiser in which dog owners brought their pets in for baths and pedicures while vendors sold dog-related merchandise.

The aim of this year’s event was to raise funds to expand the Bark Park — which resides at TeWinkle Park on Arlington Drive — to an additional area by the adjacent tennis courts.

Patt Bell, a volunteer for the Costa Mesa Bark Park Foundation who helped organize the event, said the wash typically gave baths to 100 or more dogs.

“We take all breeds, all sizes, all temperaments,” she said. “We’ve never had a problem.”

Among the canines who stopped by for cleaning were Hunter, a black-and-tan dachshund; Chloe, an English bulldog; and Capone, a French bulldog.

Kay Crouch, one of the dog washers and owner of the dog clothing company Creature Comfort Zone, said the short-haired breeds were usually the easiest to wash, but that wasn’t always the case Saturday.

“We had a little dachshund who was a terror,” she said.

MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at [email protected].