Halloween came early Uptown with Oxford Parks and Recreation’s Halloween event. On Thursday, Oct. 24 OPRD, in partnership with the Oxford Lions Club and Cincinnati Circus, hosted a Trick or Treat event in the uptown parks, featuring magicians, balloon artists, face painting, and plenty of games and candy as well as the ability for Oxford’s kids to trick-or-treat at local businesses. However, the most “paw-dorable” attraction at this event was the annual pet costume contest.
At 6 p.m., children and their families dressed in festive costumes gathered around uptown parks’ to watch more than 20 different pets make their costume debut on stage. This event was not limited to dogs as cats, bunnies and even Norwegian goats came to showcase their costumes ranging from princesses, dragons and Batman.
The contest was judged by Miami University’s Swoop, OPRD’s Parker the dog, and Rox the Fox. Winners were chosen based on effort, theme and creativity, according to OPRD’s website. These winners chose between three prize baskets which were donated by Fancy Fur Mobile dog grooming, the Oxford Veterinary Hospital and Dog Grooming by Jamie.
The winners were divided into three categories: most original, scariest and cutest costume. The most original prize was awarded to a group of three dogs, Duke, Moonlight and Kia, who were referred to as “pawtners in crime.” Kia and Moonlight were dressed as prisoners, while Duke was dressed as a police officer.
“Her [Moonlight] and her effective sister [Kia] get up to a lot of trouble together,” owner of “pawtners in crime,” Kelley Stidolph said. “They like to wrestle in the backyard a lot.” Stidolph escorted her three dogs across the stage alongside partner, Brandon Meadows.
The scariest costume award was given to Boomer, a dog dressed as a shark and the cuteness award was given to Lola and Snuggles, bunnies who walked, or were pushed in a stroller, down the aisle as a bride and groom.
With so many costumes and participants, and only three awards, competition was high at this year’s contest. Many pets did not receive recognition for their creativity or cuteness, like Raisin, the pug, who came dressed as Harry Potter, who attended “Pugwarts.”
13-year-old, Raisin entered the OPRD’s pet costume contest six times and has won three times. Raisin’s past costumes include Frank from Men in Black, a Miami cheerleader, a “Diva pug” with Stevie Nicks music and a “war pug” equipped in armor.
“I think she likes to be out and about amongst all the people,” Robin Thomas, lead psychology department advisor at Miami said. “She’s a very social pug.”
This year Raisin was escorted onto the stage in a “Pugwarts” castle themed wagon as she is completely deaf, can only see out of one eye and has neuropathy which inhibits her use of her back legs, according to Thomas.
“Some of my students in my class helped me pick out an idea for her,” said Thomas. Thomas and her husband put together the castle themed wagon themselves.
