Pets rule in weekend fashion show
The Creole language contains a number of phrases which refer to man’s best friend. Take for example, at the height of mango season we’ve got fruit “fo stone daag wit”… or a less than grand house is called a “daag sidong”. Well, as they say in the English language: “every dog will have his day”… and Sunday, as Arreini Palacio discovered, was it.
The question really should be who let the dogs out dressed up like this?
Maria Villanueva, President Belize Humane Society
“Normally we have three dog shows, so we didn’t want to have another dog show in June and then one in October, so we decided to do this for fun. This is just for fun, right.”
Fun all right. It was a pet dress up session Sunday at Memorial Park, where ten dogs and one iguana competed in the first ever Doggone Fashions. The contest, which was a climax of National Pet Week, featured a St. Bernard, Labrador, poodle and even an adorable Chihuahua.
Bandit was simply gorgeous in his beachwear, but his sportswear in the nude was a bit risqué. While Junior was really handsome in his tux, he even hooked up with a blushing Labrador bride, Negrita, who also moonlights as Bob Marley’s pet. Of course we cannot forget this twenty-year-old Pekinese couple Bibi and Cutie. Shadow may have made an amusing clown but the real jester was Taz.
Tanya Seivert, Negrita’s Owner
“She’s just like a person, she’s a living thing.”
And like any other living thing, a pet should be well taken care of, even though they may be a little spoilt at times.
Zarina Vasquez, Mimi’s Owner
“We feed her twice a day but she is kinda picky with her food. We bathe her every Saturday.”
Ississ Ortiz, Negrita’s Owner
“She eats two cups of dog food a day and she does a lot of walking and exercising and she likes to go swimming at the cayes every week.”
Zarina Vasquez
“Usually you know when they howl; she howls along with you and she has a high voice. It sounds like she is shouting, screaming, a squeaky voice.”
Tanya Seivert
“She would chase a dog from window to window when it’s just the TV.”
Beside Doggone Fashions, everyone at Memorial Park had a chance to vote for their favorite entry in a pet photo competition. Karina Villanueva’s pet cat Amos won first place and Josie Harding’s Maya came in second. Bruce Bowen’s Beau, who happens to love hammocks, was voted in third. According to the President of the Belize Humane Society, Maria Villanueva, the contest was quite a success.
Maria Villanueva
“We are trying to get Belizeans especially the children. We are gearing toward the children coming up to be responsible for their pets. We gave them pamphlets that taught the children how to take care of their pets: the food, the water, if they are sick to take them to the vet and how to treat the animals.”
But for Shahida Flores, taking care of Iggy Flores, her two year old green iguana, can be a bit of a challenge, especially since Iggy’s favorite delicacy is crickets.
Shahida Flores, Iggy’s Owner
“We have to make sure he has clean water and he lives in a safe environment. We have a big aquarium that he lives in and he likes to sleep on his rock and we have this light, it’s a heat light that he uses to sunbathe.”
Q: “Do you think it is weird to have an iguana as a pet?”
Shahida Flores
“No, I don’t think so. I love him.”
And that’s the whole point of the National Pet Week and Doggone Fashions, to love your pet, no matter how he or she is dressed. Arreini Palacio for News Five.
The winners of the Doggone Fashions Exhibition were Taz and Bandit in the beachwear category and Negrita for her bridal wear. Junior, Cutie and Bibi won for formal wear and Shadow, Junior and Mimi were the best dressed in the holiday section. Negrita, Taz and Bandit also won in the sports wear category. All these lucky contestants will be featured in a 1999 calendar.
