Tail Waggers’ First Halloween Pawty
By Dan Guarino
It was a true Halloween howl as the Tail Waggers Task Force held their first Dog Halloween Pawty at the Rockaway Freeway Dog Run on a sunny Saturday afternoon, October 26.
Close to 150 people, some in costume, attended the event, along with their pets dressed in a creative show of Halloween attire. Along with two black-shirted “Security” dogs who dutifully watched over the event, there were barking pumpkins, butterflies, witches, Batman, Robin, dragons in pink and green, bats, bikers, Superman, Wonder Women, nurses, spiders, jesters, Dumbo, even a canine with an umbrella with attached paper rain and stuffed-toy kittens and puppies.
The Tail Waggers crew, a volunteer group of Rockaway and Broad Channel dog owners, were all on hand, along with Task Force head Fred Rodriguez, who MCed the afternoon, and Latanya Blassingame-Hall, who led the committee which organized the event. The group later noted they “pulled off an out-of-this-world event, with people and their pups traveling from as far as the Bronx to be part of the fun.”
This was an “awesome turn out,” said one participant who had been involved with previous Freeway Dog Run events. “There’s never been this many people before at a party like this.”
The Tail Waggers gave special thanks to “RockAwag Dog Trainer Arielle Lisker for her demo and Q&A, and to Pawlacio Pets and Connor’s Canine Cookies for their generous prize donations.” Their photo booth for people and pets was “a huge hit, and our Trick or Treat Station had the dogs howling for Howl-o-ween treats!”
Later in the day dozens of pups paraded past a Task Force panel of judges charged with selecting the afternoon’s best costumes. First prize went to a German Shepherd in a spider costume; Second to a cute small witch, complete with tiny hat, while Third place went to a purple gorilla dressed dog. The Big Dog prize went to Roxie, a leather jacketed Hell’s Angel, while Small Dog honors went to a prison stripe wearing pet with a small sign reading “Bad Pet- Charge: Stealing Mommy’s Heart.”
Best Ensemble went to NY Yankee-themed pup Joe and Marilyn. Most Creative went to Teddy with “It’s Raining Cats and Dogs.” Going to Chuckie, the Scariest prize might have turned harrowing on discovering three dogs had actually come dressed as the haunted doll. Happy tails prevailed, however, as Blassingame-Hall quickly assembled gift baskets for each. Prizes also went to several lucky raffle winners.
Working with NYC Parks, the Tail Waggers Task Force has taken over stewardship of the Freeway Dog Run, the largest in the city, at 83-02 Beach Channel Drive. “ARF-ARF, the group that did this job admirably…for the past 17 years,” a Tail Waggers spokesperson stated, “has decided to move on to the stewardship of Rockaway’s newest dog park,” the Shore Front Dog Park.
The Dog Halloween Pawty was the Task Force’s first major event. “The community spirit was truly inspiring,” they noted. “We can’t wait to see you at our next event, and again at next year’s Halloween Pawty!”
Photos by Dan Guarino.
