Dogs had their day in Aurora on Sunday as the city offered its fifth annual Pooch Parade at Phillips Park.
A total of 100 dogs – the maximum allowed according to officials – were registered to take part in the event, which included awards for biggest and smallest dogs, best Aurora Pride, costume and trick awards, most energetic, twinsies and crowd favorite.
Amy Paul of Aurora and her daughter Fiona, 11, were vying for the crowd favorite award as Fiona walked around in a Flaming Hot Cheetos costume accompanied by her dog Lucy who appeared as Chester Cheetah.
“This is our third year in a row, and the first year Lucy and Fiona won the Aurora Pride Award – Lucy was a rainbow, she had rainbow feathers, and we’re hoping to come back this year and win the fan favorite,” Amy Paul said.
Clayton Muhammad, chief communications and equity officer for the city, said the event again drew a huge variety of breeds and a lot of interest.
“I think we have something like over 18 to 20 breeds and this is an opportunity that started when the mayor first came in and saw people’s connection to their pets, especially dogs,” Muhammad said. “This offers some good energy that allows for that transition time from summer into fall and just an opportunity for some more family activities.”
Muhammad said “some of these dog owners, they go all in for these awards” at the event.
“This becomes a nice fun event and we wrap in opportunities for vendors to be there, so it become a nice business event for those who have products that relate to the dog community,” he said. “We put out some of our local veterinarians and dog vendors as judges so it gives them exposure as well. And for the icing on the cake, we also have adoptable dogs out there. You can’t take the dog on this day, but you can certainly come back the next and what I like is that your dog is already out so you can see if there is that compatibility.”
Hundreds packed the sunken garden area at Phillips Park for the event.
Braeden Hill, 15, brought his St. Bernard and said he was hoping his dog would win the crowd favorite award “as he’s 160 pounds and he’s fluffy with lots of fur.”
Mahika Jain, 12, of Aurora, clearly was hoping to win the costume award as she and her dog came dressed as ballerinas.
“I wanted to do this as it looked fun and my dog she had this costume for a while and we thought it would be really cute to go to this thing and be matching,” Mahika said. “We haven’t come to this before because my dog is only 2 years old.”
Brian Moreno, 27, of Aurora brought a mini goldendoodle to the parade, with both he and the dog dressed like Batman.
“Now that he’s more mature, he’s able to control himself and he’s more trained,” Moreno said of bringing his dog to the event. “Why the Batman? Ever since I was a little boy, I liked Batman and he helps the community and since I was 11 years old, I’ve always helped my community. So I thought, why not get my dog involved too?”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
