Nationals Park will be overrun with wagging tails on Tuesday, August 25, when the Washington Nationals host their Pups in the Park game against the Colorado Rockies. The event doubles as a birthday party for Natty, the team's official dog, who turns six months old that day.
Natty made his Major League debut back on May 15 after being introduced as the franchise's official team dog on May 11, according to Canine Companions. The eight-week-old Golden Retriever and Labrador Retriever mix was born on March 5 and got his name through an online fan vote in March. As WJLA reports, Tuesday's game will feature dog-friendly activities, giveaways, and a postgame parade to mark the milestone.
Six Months In, Still In Training
Natty isn't just a mascot. Per Canine Companions, he lives in Virginia with volunteer puppy raisers for roughly 18 months of foundational training and stadium socialization before heading back to the organization for placement as a service dog for a person with a disability. Eukanuba has served as Canine Companions' exclusive dog food partner for more than 35 years, the organization notes.
The Tuesday matchup against Colorado is one of six Pups in the Park games on the Nationals' 2026 schedule, running from April through September. It's also one of two dates this season featuring a postgame warning-track puppy parade, the other having taken place on May 20, according to the station's report.
What Dogs and Owners Can Do at the Ballpark
Dogs attending the game can take part in the Eukanuba Fuel Extraordinary Combine, held behind Section 143 in the right field plaza from the time gates open through the end of the eighth inning, per the same account. The combine includes three challenges: the Home Plate Hustle, a third base-to-home plate dog toy run; the Coaches Call, an obedience test on the pitcher's mound; and the Game-Winning Catch, a vertical-leap fetching challenge.
Eukanuba experts will give feedback to participants, and pet owners will walk away with customized scouting reports comparing their dogs' results with other entrants and with Natty himself, WJLA reports. Every dog attending the game will also receive a bandana and a rally towel courtesy of the Pedigree Foundation and Eukanuba, and Eukanuba plans to hand out samples of puppy and adult dog food along with other promotional items. Fans can also enter a sweepstakes for a year's supply of dog food, and the Nationals will run their usual $5 Tuesday food and beverage menu during the game.
After the final out, dogs and their owners will be invited onto the field for a warning-track walk and a Pups in the Park parade alongside Natty, capping off his half-birthday celebration in front of the crowd.
Getting a Dog Into the Ballpark
Bringing a dog to Nationals Park isn't as simple as walking up with a leash. Owners need a dedicated $10 dog ticket in addition to a human ticket, must sit in designated outfield reserved sections, and are required to submit a signed liability waiver along with proof of current vaccinations, including rabies, according to MLB.com. Dog tickets are sold only as part of the special event package and aren't available through general box-office sales. Tickets can be purchased at nationals.com/pups.
A Fundraiser With Bigger Stakes
Every dollar from those $10 dog tickets goes directly to the Humane Rescue Alliance, D.C.'s primary animal welfare organization, which formed in 2016 through the merger of the Washington Humane Society and the Washington Animal Rescue League, according to reporting cited in the dossier from The Washington Post. That merger created what was described as the first end-to-end urban animal care organization in a major U.S. city.
The fundraiser lands at a tough moment for shelters nationally. Industry reporting from Shelter Animals Count and the ASPCA found that U.S. shelters ended 2025 with more dogs in their care than when the year began, as adoption rates lagged and the median length of stay climbed to 47 days. Canine intakes actually dropped slightly, by 4%, but adoptions and return-to-owner numbers fell too, according to the same reporting.
Presenting sponsor Pedigree Foundation has leaned into that gap. The foundation surpassed a milestone of helping more than one million shelter dogs while distributing $1.2 million across 94 shelter grants in 2025, and it has awarded more than 6,400 grants totaling upward of $15.3 million since its founding in 2008.
Part of a Bigger Ballpark Calendar
Pups in the Park is just one entry on a 2026 slate of more than 50 special ticket events at Nationals Park, a lineup that also includes the 21st annual Pride Night OUT, Major League Baseball's longest-running Pride tradition. Those special ticket events raise money for regional nonprofits including Team DC.
Dog-friendly sports promotions aren't unique to the Nationals in D.C. D.C. United runs its own “Pups at the Pitch” at Audi Field, and Washington Capitals players have supported Humane Rescue Alliance initiatives, according to RMNB. Local athletes across the city's teams frequently show up for shelter calendar shoots and ceremonial first pitches to keep adoptable animals in the public eye.
Fans heading to the outfield sections for the dog-friendly game will also find an expanded concessions lineup. Nationals Park added regional vendors Fuzzies Burgers and Stuggy's ahead of the 2026 season, bringing items like crab-mac hot dogs to the left-field concourse as part of a broader push toward Baltimore-area dining concepts, as Crab Dogs Crash Left Field detailed earlier this year.
