The dog days of summer took on a whole new meaning Sunday at Denver's Berkeley Park Pool.

It had nothing to do with feeling lethargic in the heat. Not even close.

Big dogs, little dogs, fat dogs and skinny dogs, dogs with squeaky yelps, dogs with throaty barks, dogs with long tails and those with short all plunged into the crystal blue waters of the pool now officially closed to humans for the summer.

If you can interpret a bark, then Angel, a Bernese mountain dog, was one big, happy, drippy clump of black, tan and white fur. Angel paced the pool's edge then ventured onto a floating dog ramp. She lowered her big body and pushed off.

Jo Ann Rzeppa watched with a kind of curiosity and adoration that only a dog lover can muster.

"It's the first time she's gotten in without me," Rzeppa said. "I'm having a mother moment."

Rzeppa is an Arvada police sergeant who took the day off to participate in the city of Denver's first DogaPOOLooza event, a fundraiser for the Parks and Recreation Department.

"There are important things in life," Rzeppa said, as she prepared to get in the pool to help her dog out.

By all accounts, the event seemed to be a soggy success. Before a midday break, 121 dog owners had paid $5 per pup for entry. Organizers had expected only about 50 pooches, but there was a line when the gates opened.

Vaccinations and dog licenses were available for $20. Even doggie ice cream made with yogurt, turkey and green beans was on hand.

At crowded points in the day, there were a few skirmishes. But for the most part, the dogs got along.

Two-legged dog companions had fun of their own. Many swam with their dogs in water that turned murkier as the day went on.

And, as a general rule, only people who didn't care about dogs shaking water on them or smelling like a wet dog showed up.

"You notice that dog people are really good people," said Rick Larson, 51, of Westminster, as he watched a very contented 9-month-old Labradoodle named Nira catching air as she leapt into the deep end after a ball.

"You make friends."

In the nearby baby pool, sibling Jack Russell terriers Chloe and Tucker weren't so sure.

They clung to the edge of the shallow pool. Owner Ingrid Guenther, 31, of Denver, said they're used to "water you can't see in."

"She's really a mean fearless dog but you would never know it," Guenther's husband, 33-year-old David Scott, said of Chloe.

Then he turned to Chloe.

"If there was a duck in there, you'd go after it, you wuss."

poppenj@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5176