Westminster Dog Show's Got 'Nuthin On Us!

The annual Seminole Campground Pet Parade was held Saturday morning amid great fanfare. This was a stressful moment for us all.  So many well groomed mutts being led around by their loving moms and pops.  Mix-breeds and rescues, old and young, the unruly and the timid -- barking, whining and tails wagging uncontrollably. There were a few pure bred, well trained, beautifully groomed dogs but they were certainly a minority here today.

We gathered in a disorganized and lopsided circle at a wide space in the campground parking lot.  All were all vying for one of the coveted awards.... best trick, best costume, oldest, smallest, youngest and of course, the highlight of the day ...... the pet who looked most like his or her owner.  Of special interest to some was the popular "howl at the moon" event.  The competition was fierce.

It never occurred to me that Ozzie and Lexie should be part of the Seminole Campground Pet Parade -- but during our morning walk on Saturday, Nancy and Linda suggested I might participate using our beautiful pink stroller!  A great idea!  I wouldn't dream of trying to lead little Lexie among a crowd of strangers (human or animal) as the stress would be too much.  But she loves sitting in the safety of her stroller watching activities.  We agreed to participate if Nancy would enter Max and Maggie, her two Shelties to help us get through the nerve wrecking event.

I hastily dressed them in simple, yet elegant, vest harnesses... Ozzie wore a smart and sophisticated desert sunset pattern while Lexie was pretty in pink with a touch of yellow (the "caution" color).  I ran a brush over their "still almost clean" white hair and pulled a cute little ponytail on the top of Lexie's head. Ozzie probably had a few tangles in his tail but no one would notice. 

A quick wipe over the pink stroller took away a bit of dust, we loaded the good luck stuffed dog, Loxie, in the lower bin and off we go to our first ever Pet Parade!

Pop was our official photographer. Here's how it went...

I think this is almost the way they do it at the Westminster Dog Show.
Well maybe not, but our competition was much more fun.

Note the look of composure.
We are #20 and #21.  Two dogs... two numbers.  One stroller!  

Nancy shows signs of intense stress too. 
With Nancy...Maggie with flowers in her hair and Max, sporty looking in his khaki sun visor.
 

The Newfoundland is Tyler, I don't know his owner's name.
There's our next door neighbor, Mary with beautiful Zoey in her fashionable pink bandanna and matching leash.

I believe this photo is of the thrilling "trick" competition. 
I don't know the participants names.

More of the competitors.  A Collie sporting a sparkling red bandanna.
A pair of matching black Standard Poodles wore cute baseball caps.

I'm pretty sure Tyler, the Newfoundland, won the biggest dog prize. 
 

Tensions are running high during the cute costume event.
Muscle Shirts, bikinis and ballerina too-toos

We cast a few ballots in some of the categories and then decided to parade through the campground.  Once again, this highly organized activity was stressful as you can tell by the looks on the faces of the participants. 

Linda leads Maggie while Nancy holds tightly onto Max
Lexie looks ahead and Ozzie looks back at a little cutie he saw in the crowd.

Along the parade route.

The parade provided an excellent opportunity to pee and/or poop for many of the contestants.
Intense competition can cause an upset stomach you know.

Once the official Pet Parade was over, we returned to the show ring, finalized the voting, tallied the ballots and gave some awards.  We didn't win anything and neither did Nancy with Maggie and Max. Drat!  Maybe next year!

Even without winning, we had a great time! 

Here's Cheryl and Spanky. 
Spanky is in obedience school but I think he's not at the top of his class.
But wait!  Cheryl is holding a certificate.  Spanky won something!
 

There's Russ (blue shirt and beard) with two more of their dogs, whose names I forgot.
I don't know the name of the German Shepherd or it's owner.  

Later that morning, Wayne and I ran an errand and left Lexie and Ozzie at home to recover from the excitement of the Pet Parade. We were so proud of their good behavior, never barking at any of the other dogs or trying to pick any fights. 

Upon our return, we found our little dogs had gotten themselves into a bit of trouble again. Seems Ozzie has learned to stand on his rear tippy toes, so he can reach the papers on Pop's credenza.  As usual, he shredded the paper and Lexie ate it. We'll wait in great anticipation to see that everything comes out alright. 

A small calendar and several of Pop's investment note pads were destroyed.
Note that Mr. Shark is laying on the floor in front of the sofa.
The white sock and everything else had been taken out of the toy box too.

Two innocent looking Maltese dogs.
Ozzie on the back of the sofa.  Lexie on the sofa seat.
They won't look at the camera.  Celebrity has gone to their heads.