Downtown Idaho Springs goes to the dogs

Kids, locals, tourists and a whole lot of dogs filled the streets of downtown Idaho Springs as music and fur filled the air for the 2nd annual Fur-ling Fest.

The Furlings Fest is an adaptation of the annual Fruhlingsfest in Germany, which means “spring festival,” according to event organizers including Tommyknocker Brew Pub, again this year, and Charlie’s Place.

dog howling
Fur-line Fest in Idaho Springs brings dozens of pups and people together June 7. Credit: Chris Koeberl

According to the support group Friend’s of Charlie’s Place, it is a 501 (c) non-profit designed to help support the ​Clear Creek/Gilpin County Animal Shelter, a non-kill shelter in Dumont, Colorado.  

“We are a staff of dedicated volunteers who strive to do all that we can to help with the needs of the animals at Charlie’s Place, and to offer assistance, when we can, to the companion animals and their owners within our community,” reads a statement from Friends of Charlie’s Place.

Dozens of vendors along with several animal shelters, including Charlie’s Place, set up information booths for their shelter and how the adoption process works.

two dogs
River and Everest travel from Denver to Fur-ling Fest in Idaho Springs June 7. Credit: Chris Koeberl

Kati Harken and husband Dale were at the event supporting their organization “Big Dogs Huge Paws” out of Denver. “We are a giant breed rescue all of our volunteers foster dogs in their homes,” Harken said.

The couple brought their two big dogs “Wolfgang” and “Arnie” an Argentinian Mastiff. 

“They’re harder to get placed and they’re more expensive to foster and so we really did decide to concentrate on the big kids and it’s been very good,” Harken said.

The big dog group said they rely on grants and donations to support the project.

Free caricatures and pet photography sponsored by the city, according to Idaho Springs director of Business & Community Promotion Sadie Schultz.

The event brought families and couples with their dogs from Clear Creek County communities as well as Denver, Arvada and Golden.

“We’re bringing people into our story, we want people to experience all things Idaho Springs and the authentic mountain town experience. Small town big heart you get to know your neighbors, it’s a fun place to be,” Schultz said.

The band “Coyote Circle” out of Gilpin County provided the music outside Tommyknockers for the day.

Jessica Gallagher recently moved to St Mary’s from Denver with her dog Gracie “This community is so dog friendly, it’s just so cool you don’t have to leave them at home you can bring them, you know we’re all part of a family so we can enjoy it together,” Gallagher said.

However, she said shortly after moving in she was seeing another dog in the area hanging around her house and playing with Gracie.

“Lulu lived in our neighborhood and she would come visit Gracie when she would break free from her yard, they were friends,” Gallagher said.

“Then she (Lulu) started hanging around the house a little bit longer, she wasn’t going home, so we took her to Charlie’s Place and discovered that her owner had passed away in a car accident, so she was homeless for about 10-days,” Gallagher said. “So now we foster her from Charlie’s Place, she found me.”

Baby
One-year-old Jackson Rangler, from Idaho Springs, smiled and laughed at the puppies Crowding Miner St. while tightly strapped to his mother Jessica Rangler.
Credit: Chris Koeberl

One-year-old Jackson Rangler, from Idaho Springs, smiled and laughed at the puppies and the people crowding the street all while tightly strapped to her mother Jessica Rangler.

“We love it, all the tourists coming in giving business to the downtown merchants. It’s a great way to kick off a summer of events,” Rangler said.

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