Celebrating National Westie Day

Now here’s something to howl about! National Westie Day was on Friday, March 20 and it was all about celebrating the White West Highland Terriers. Better known as Westies, these small hardy dogs originate from Scotland and were used for hunting small rodents.

“The purpose of the day is to celebrate the loyalty, charm and energetic personality of Westies,” said Mary Bart, one of the founding members of the Westie Walk. “Westie owners will also tell you that Westies are friendly, fun, make great house pets but are often stubborn.”

To celebrate National Westie Day, a pack of local Marco Island Westie owners scheduled the first annual Westie Walk of Marco Island at Mackle Park. Other cities have similar Westie Walks, most notably New York, where over 2,000 Westies parade to the sound of bagpipers in Central Park. The group dropped flyers around Marco and at the local veterinary offices and through word of mouth with the dog-friendly walkers at Mackle Park. They received confirmation from four Westie paw parents and four more joined them the morning of the walk. Other dog parents representing Pomeranians and small mixed breeds also joined the short walk around Mackle Park.

The founding members of this event, Mary and Bob Bart and Jean and Mark Menard, didn’t quite know what to expect on the morning of the Westie Walk. Jimmy, the Menard’s Westie is 22 months, the youngest in the group, and Stella is 15 ½ and was the oldest. The Barts love Westies and three-year-old Lamb-Felix is their fifth Westie.

One of the most common questions people ask is whether a Westie is a good pet. Local Westie owners had this to say: “fun, super smart, small but determined, watches television, loves meeting people, sweet, very friendly and stubborn.” Though no two dogs are the same, in general, it sounded like the White West Highland Terriers make excellent pets.

The group is already planning for a second annual Westie Walk and they hope to add a bagpiper to highlight the breed’s Scottish roots According to Mary, they would love to have more Westies for the Walk next year and invite other dog breeds and Celtic dancers, too.