VANCOUVER—As corgis from all over the Lower Mainland prepare to descend on Vancouver’s Spanish Banks, organizers are now worried the corgi spectacle is gaining too much attention.

More than 2,000 people said they are either interested or are going to Saturday’s corgi meetup— which will include a corgi race — according to the Facebook event page at time of publication Friday.

“It got out of hand,” said corgi owner Olivia Zhang, whose company, Paws Bento, is co-sponsoring Saturday’s corgi costume contest.

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“We didn’t really expect it to be that popular among non-corgi owners.”

So out of hand, that event organizers had to ask people not to attend if they don’t own corgis or are not planning to adopt or buy one in the near future.

The Vancouver Park Board said rangers will be keeping a close eye on the beach Saturday.

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Any event with more than 50 attendees requires a special events permit, but the corgi meet-up does not have one, a park board spokesperson confirmed.

Zhang predicted there could be at least 100 corgis on Saturday.

The rest of the people who marked “going” on the Facebook event page are likely corgi enthusiasts, according to an informal poll on the page, but don’t actually have one themselves. (Four-in-five respondents said they had no corgi, but were simply planning to attend the meet-up to “see these loaves of bread.”)

Corgis’ popularity has exploded in recent years as the breed’s short stature and oversized ears continue to win people over.

Zhang welcomed her corgi, Kiki, to her family about two years ago.

At that time, Kiki was the only one of her breed in their Coquitlam neighbourhood, Zhang said. Now there are at least seven others.

Longtime members of the corgi community said they welcome the new-found interest.

But some expressed concern that some people, captivated by the corgi’s cute looks, are not aware that the breed requires a significant amount of exercise to be healthy and may not be a good match for everyone in the city.

“(Corgis) are used to getting out and herding cattle and sheep,” explained Marion Statham, a member of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi Association of Canada, “I personally don’t believe a downtown Vancouver highrise is good for them.”

Statham rescues Pembroke Welsh corgis — of the two corgi breeds, the ones without tails — on Vancouver Island and says demand for the dogs far exceeds what reputable breeders can provide.

The number of purebred Pembroke Welsh corgis registered in Canada has jumped from 172 dogs in 2015 to 261 dogs in 2017, according to the Canadian Kennel Club.

But the number of non-registered corgis is likely much higher, as there are no CKC-registered corgi breeders in B.C. and yet last summer’s corgi meet up at Spanish Banks attracted more than 70 local corgis.

“They have become such a hard-to-find dog,” said Statham, who has lived with corgis almost all her life.

“Their popularity is coming back and I’m glad to see it.”

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The B.C. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals recommends people do research on reputable rescue organizations and breeders before welcoming a dog into the family.

It advises: “Make the right match by thinking about your expectations, lifestyle and household.”