Dogs, owners invited to select Threshers games

CLEARWATER — Take your dog out to the ball game.

Maybe he'll woof, woof, woof for the home team.

Bark at the Ballpark, a benefit for the Humane Society of Pinellas, invites all sports hounds — be they two-legged or four — to Bright House Networks Field on Sunday as the Clearwater Threshers face the Dunedin Blue Jays.

Though your furry friend may not understand the intricacies of the game, he'll certainly dig the social side, said Twila Cole, special events coordinator for the shelter.

"It's a very popular event," she said. "Everywhere you look, people are smiling, tails are wagging."

It's so popular that three additional Bark in the Ballpark events are slated: May 2 and 23 and June 27. The Humane Society receives all proceeds from the sale of dog tickets, which go for $4.

There's a special season-long raffle of baseball memorabilia for the rabid Bark in the Ballpark fans who come to all four games.

Gates open at noon; the game starts at 1 p.m.

Back by popular demand is the "est" pet contest, where competitors vie to win a pet portrait courtesy of the Big Game Gallery. It's valued at $400, Cole said.

Just name your own extreme category.

"We've had all kinds of entries: the hairiest, the curliest, the sportiest and the drooliest," Cole said. "One lady shaved a Mohawk onto her dog's head and entered it as the punkest."

Adoptable pets will be there, too.

Besides the usual baseball fare, frozen organic doggie yogurt will be for sale.

Make sure to stay for the end — it's a hoot.

Or a howl.

"After it's over, people get to run the bases with their dogs," Cole said. "It's amazing how much fun they have."