Trumpet Article

One of my favorite volunteer activities is representing CCHS at adoption events held in stores like Petsmart, Prairieland Feeds, and Rural King. We get to spend a few hours with a small group of CCHS dogs or cats and they get to spend a little time away from the shelter. The people we meet at these events are always happy to see the shelter animals and they always come up and tell us stories about how they adopted their family pet(s).

On October 27, I volunteered to help out at the Rural King Pet-O-Ween event. For this event, we were showcasing only one dog – a Pit Bull Chihuahua mix named Mr. Punch. Mr. Punch was a sweetheart of a lapdog. He had spent the whole morning at Rural King with the two volunteers who had worked the morning shift, Jennie and Laurie.

Shortly after the other volunteers, Janet and Tara, and I arrived for the afternoon shift, we were asked if we would be willing to serve as the panel of judges for the pet costume contest. Naturally, we said, “Yes!” but we were totally unprepared for what a tough assignment it would be. There were 13 entrants – 12 dogs and 1 cat – each one cuter than the last. There was a tiny Chihuahua dressed as a chicken, a very sweet-looking German Shepherd dressed as a devil, a really cute white dog outfitted as Zorro (complete with sword), and a very tolerant, patient dog dressed as a tourist. (She was wearing loud, floral print shorts, a tank top, a fanny pack around her middle, sunglasses and a straw hat). If that wasn’t humorous enough, along came a Jack Russell terrier dressed as a sheriff. He was even wearing two little holsters around his middle containing two tiny little guns. Then there was the little Boxer puppy with the tiny boxing gloves tied around his neck and his trainer, a larger dog with a towel draped around his shoulders. They were followed by a small dog dressed as a spider. I have to confess that my personal favorite was the cat – this was a long haired black and white kitty wearing a blue Cubs baseball cap and a little Cubs striped shirt. I couldn’t even look at it without laughing. And, if you’ve ever tried to dress a cat, you know it’s not an easy thing to do. I really admired this kitty and its owner just for being there – the cat never hissed, growled or snarled at anyone (the way my cats would have done) and it didn’t seem at all intimidated by any of the dogs there. While talking to the owner later on, I learned that this special little cat was a CCHS alum!

Our judging was based on creativity, style, originality, and showmanship. There were three prizes - first, second, and third place. Third place went to a large dog who was dressed as a prisoner. He was wearing a black and white striped body suit, had a big ball on a chain hanging from his dog collar, and a little black and white cap on his head. His owner was dressed as a sheriff. The second place winner was also a large dog and he was dressed as a clown. He was wearing a brown suit with a large colorful, polka-dotted tie. A straw hat with a flower sticking out of it was perched on his head. The first place winner was a teeny, tiny little toy terrier dressed as Tinker Bell. She was wearing little bitty green wings and a little green bow on the top of her head. She was accompanied by a slightly larger terrier dressed as Peter Pan. He was sporting a green felt tunic, a matching feathered hat, and a sword. The two of them made an adorable pair.

Like I said, it was really hard choosing a winner because we thought ALL of them were creative, stylish, and original. And the showmanship that each pet exhibited was truly remarkable. I must say I was also extremely impressed by the showmanship of the owners – they were all very gracious and good-naturedly accepted our final decisions. In the end, the Rural King representatives decided to give a special award to the cat. I guess they felt the way I did - that having the courage to put a costume on a cat merited some sort of honor. When the ceremony was over, the cat looked relieved to go back into its carrier but the dogs looked like they were just warming up to go trick-or-treating. For Janet, Tara, and me, this event at Rural King will probably be among the most entertaining CCHS events we will ever be a part of. I hope Rural King does this again next year – I can’t wait to do it again!