Walk into any pet store at this time of year, and you’ll notice they’re selling dog costumes aplenty. When it comes to designing get-ups for their pups, owners are getting more and more creative.
“It’s not just the crazy old lady dressing her dog anymore,” says Susan Bing, the founder of Trixie and
Peanut, a dog clothing store that can transform your pup into a ladybug, penguin or even Frankenstein’s
monster. For years, Bing’s best seller has been bat wings (classic!), but she made a new addition to her Halloween collection this year with doggie wigs – including flowing blond locks that make a great Britney Spears (pre-head-shaving).
So what’s a pooch to do once he’s all dressed up on Halloween? Luckily, there’s a whole array of ghoulish dog events.
From The Bronx to Brooklyn, dog parks throughout New York are hosting Halloween parades and parties where dog costumes range from cute to spooky to just plain wrong – like the Hurricane Katrina dogs who appeared at the Tompkins Square dog run Halloween parade last year looking disheveled with wet hair and led by an owner in a FEMA
T-shirt. Celebrity costumes are always popular, too. Last year’s winner at the West 72nd Street dog run donned a black wig and scrubs and trotted through the yard as McDreamy.
But while these events might have you believe they’re put on for the enjoyment of the dogs, it’s safe to say the owners are having the better time of it.
“This is completely not for the dogs,” says Garrett Rosso, the manager of the Tompkins Square dog run. “The dogs are totally mortified by it.”
But some owners just can’t help but adorn their pets – come on, it’s too adorable! – and others even insist on getting in on the action themselves.
“When owners dress up, we tend to look the other way,” says Kath Hansen, a member of Fort Greene PUPS, an organization of dog owners who use the park and schedule events such as the Annual Great PUPkin Dog Contest.
But don’t tell that to last year’s second-place winner at Fort Green Park’s costume contest. The Rotweiler and its two owners wore matching one-eyed purple people eater costumes while carrying a boombox that played the song of the same name.