When South Carolina real estate professional Johnathan Lower has to go to the doghouse, it’s a little different than usual. Over the last couple of years, he and his pet golden retriever, Teddy, have become Internet sensations with millions of TikTok followers around the world with comedic visits to a custom dog bedroom replete with a television, simulated fireplace and more.
The dynamic pet-owner duo will be featured stars all day Saturday in North Charleston’s Riverfront Park at Celebrity Paws in the Park, the largest animal event of the year in South Carolina.
“We could not be more excited about having Internet stars Johnathan and Teddy involved this year as our special celebrity hosts,” said Charleston Animal Society President and CEO Joe Elmore. “With almost 6 million TikTok fans and over 1.5 billion social media video views, Johnathan and Teddy’s involvement will certainly bring our message about helping homeless animals to new audiences.”
Thousands of animal lovers are invited and expected to participate in the fun events of the day at Riverfront Park in North Charleston and presented by Crews Subaru:
- Walk for Animals: Celebratory walk for those who helped with fund-raising. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m.
- Celebrity Paws in the Park festival: The event starts at 10 a.m. and lasts until 3 p.m. Plan to sit, stay and play all day in canine activity zones, including pet adoptions, Swift Paws lure coursing and canine demonstrations. You can also see the world famous “K9s in Flight,” the country’s premier high-flying dog entertainers. Great live music will be provided by by Midnight City.
New for 2023
Two new features make the 2023 Celebrity Paws in the Park more fun than ever:
“Barks & Brews” Craft Beer Festival offers a relaxing area where nine local and regional craft breweries – Brewlab, Tideland Brewing, Frothy Beard, Snafu, Common House, Palmetto Brewery, Two Blokes, Low Tide Brewing and Bevi Beni – will provide tasty suds that festival-goers can sample and relax as they enjoy pets and the park. You can buy Barks & Brews pre-sale tickets through June 9. The $25 discounted price includes entry to both Celebrity Paws in the Park and Barks & Brews, a commemorative wristband for you and a bandanna for your dog. You’ll also receive a souvenir glass plus tastings at participating breweries.
Military families get in free thanks to the Rachael Ray Foundation. Just show military ID.
Jonathan and Teddy can’t wait to visit Charleston
Lower reflected how pets like Teddy can be a Godsend to people around the world.
“Dogs can be a beacon of light for people, they’re mood lifters,” he told the Anderson Independent Mail near his hometown of Piedmont. “Some people are in bad situations and bad times, and sometimes a funny video can lift spirits. It helps.”
Lower said he and Teddy had their first viral hit with “Teddy Tuesday, where I take our fans with us as Teddy and I spend the day together.”
Then, he recalled, the idea expanded when his fiancé, Katelyn Diane, had the idea to take the Teddy Tuesday format and apply it to helping homeless dogs in shelters.
“Shelter Dog Saturday was created where we take a homeless dog from Anderson County Paws out on a day long adventure and share that video online,” he told Charleston Animal Society. “So far, every dog featured in Shelter Dog Saturday has been adopted shortly after the videos have premiered.”
The Shelter Dog Saturday promotion has been featured in national and regional publications as a way of finding new homes for rescue dogs.
“We were so excited when Charleston Animal Society approached us about becoming involved with other organizations across South Carolina,” Lower said. “We felt participating in Celebrity Paws in the Park was a great way to be a part of their event and to expand the meaning of our platform.”
This year’s presenting sponsor: Crews Subaru
Charleston Animal Society is thrilled to welcome back Crews Subaru as the presenting sponsor for Celebrity Paws in the Park in its second year.
“For the last 13 years, Crews Subaru has partnered with Charleston Animal Society to support our lifesaving mission,” said Elmore. “When we created Celebrity Paws in the Park as our spring signature event – an event that I know the community will fall in love with – we only approached Crews Subaru to partner with us as the presenting sponsor because we know of their commitment to this community and their support of organizations that help both people and pets.”
Ken French, marketing guy for Crews Subaru, said the company was honored to be presenting sponsor for the next two years because “Subaru Loves Pets!”
“As an integral part of our ‘The Subaru Love Promise’ to our community, we believe that people and pets are better together,” he said. “As the 2021 Subaru Retailer of the Year, Crews supports many programs that benefit children, and Celebrity Paws in the Park brings our passions of kids
About Charleston Animal Society
Since 1874, the mission of Charleston Animal Society has always been the prevention of cruelty to animals. Over 15,000 animals will turn to Charleston Animal Society for caring, compassion and hope this year alone. In addition to caring for homeless animals, adopting them into new homes, and reuniting lost pets with their families, the organization responds to animals in crisis as a result of both man-made and natural disasters. The comprehensive shelter medicine program not only provides direct services for as many as 1,200 animals in our system of care at one time, the shelter veterinarians also spay or neuter upwards of 10,000 dogs and cats each year and they provide emergency medical services to critically ill and injured animals arriving at the shelter daily. For more information, visit www.CharlestonAnimalSociety.org.
Saturday’s fun starts at 8 a.m. June 10. Riverfront Park is located on the old Charleston Navy Base property at 1061 Everglades Ave., North Charleston.
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