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‘Paws for a Cause’ event set for all day Saturday at new Clinton dog park

There will be lots of fun for families and their dogs this coming Saturday, April 30, as the “Paws for a Cause” event takes place at the new Carden Farm Dog Park in Clinton.

The event, at 410 Riverview Drive in South Clinton, will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and will include vendors, activities including an agility course for dogs to try, K-9 demonstrations throughout the day, kids’ games and crafts, food trucks, a beer garden and more.

Organizers says they are expecting thousands of people to attend the event.

There will also be lots of animal shelters and rescue groups on hand with adoptable pets and low-cost vaccinations and microchips available for all.

Led by the city of Clinton, sponsors include the Anderson County Animal Rescue Foundation and the Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley.

Proceeds from the events will be used to help “animals in need from our community,” the sponsors said. That includes veterinary care, pet food and other forms of pet help.

Among scheduled events will be a Clinton Police Department K-9 exhibition at 10:30 a.m.; and pet first aid and CPR demonstrations at 2 p.m.

The dog park in South Clinton officially opened last Nov. 5. Work began last summer on the park, off Carden Farm Road, on land along the Clinch River that the city obtained from the Tennessee Valley Authority more than two decades ago.

It includes fenced areas of about three acres for large dogs and two acres for small dogs. A road was built leading into the paved parking lot at the park’s entrance.

The park sits on a 17-acre tract the city got in a trade from TVA, and was mostly paid for by a $25,000 grant from the Randy Boyd Foundation in Knoxville.

There is a Kentucky split-rail fence around the dog park, which includes a common area at the entrance that gives access to the separate areas for large and small dogs.

There are water fountains for people and dogs just outside the entrance, along with a water faucet people can use to wash their dogs if they get too dirty in the park. Each of the doggie areas has a small shelter with benches and sheet-metal roofs for shade, and some trees were planted for natural shade. Eventually, walking trails will go around the entire 17 acres, and will have a connector to the dog park area, city officials said. Part of the trail will follow the riverbank.

There are two benches for the dog park that were donated by the city’s 4-H clubs.