Seven years after fostering and then adopting her chow chow Kaya from the Evanston Animal Shelter, Jeannie Sanke was back at Trot for Tails on Saturday, July 11. Kaya's face was on this year's event flyer.

Sanke was one of hundreds who gathered at Ridgeville Park that morning for the shelter's annual fundraising celebration, a three-hour outdoor festival that capped weeks of online donations. As of Sunday evening, July 12, the campaign had brought in $42,971, according to the Daily Northwestern. Last year's campaign raised more than $35,000 total. The shelter's 2026 goal is $50,000, according to Evanston Animal Shelter (EAS) Vice President Kate Perschke.

"We've had participants raising money over the last five weeks or so," Perschke told the Daily Northwestern at the event. "Today, it culminates in this fun outdoor festival."

The morning kicked off at 9 a.m. with the Parks Walk, a self-guided 3-mile stroll through 10 parks surrounding Ridgeville, including Leider Park, Elks Park Tot Lot, and Brummel Park. Walkers carried a "Pawsport" map that got stamped at each stop. Registration cost $10 per individual or $25 per family, with proceeds going directly to EAS.

By 10 a.m., the festival was in full swing with live music from Donovan Mixon and Jim Cox, an agility course, a sniff safari, a kissing photo booth, and 150 hot dogs and vegan alternatives. The Chicago Stars mascot SuperNova made an appearance.

The event was co-organized by Natalie Sallee, Ridgeville Park District's director of recreation and special events, who has worked at Ridgeville for 10 years. In a July 8 interview with the Evanston Roundtable, Sallee called the collaboration with EAS "a dream" for her as a longtime pet owner.

Sponsors included the Chicago Stars, Veterinary Emergency Group, Kohn Animal Hospital, EVS Pet Urgent Care, Dogtopia, and Corey's Canine Corner. Virginia Mann, founder of Corey's Canine Corner, said her organization sponsored the event for the first time this year and plans to return in 2027. She told the Daily Northwestern that EAS "far exceeds what you typically find at a municipal animal shelter," citing its custodial care program that houses animals when owners face emergencies like house fires.

The shelter's costs have risen alongside demand. EAS Executive Director Vicky Pasenko, who has worked at the shelter for about 19 years, told the Daily Northwestern that the organization took in 255 animals in the first half of 2026, roughly 30% more than the same period in 2025, according to Pasenko. The increase followed the opening of EAS's $7.2 million facility in 2024, the city's first zero on-site carbon emissions building.

Among the shelter's recent arrivals: Frank, a 9-pound Yorkshire terrier found in a park with a matted, urine-stained coat. After receiving care, Pasenko said, Frank now sports "an adorable haircut" and is "energetic, playful and happy."

The Trot for Tails campaign remains open online, with about $7,000 still needed to reach the $50,000 goal.