Even pets have their Halloween party

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) yesterday morning threw its 9th annual Halloween Party for pets called “Scaredy Cats and Dogs” at the Eastwood Central Plaza in Quezon City.

Canines and felines, along with their owners, strutted on the PAWS stage and showed off their colorful, imaginative, and entertaining costumes.

Tina and Piwi Comia spent their free time during the past two months tinkering with galvanized sheets, a piece of cloth from an aunt’s old dress and twigs and scraps of wood to come up with their “Yabbadabba-Dog” mobile.

The mobile was the “props” used by their four-year-old Fatchoi and three-year-old Fatchai, both chow-chow dogs, who came in as Fred and Wilma of the television cartoon show “The Flintstones.”

Tina, a dentist by profession, believed that this concept was perfect for their pets because “it was uncomfortable for them to wear shoes and the Flintstones were pre-historic characters and did not really wear shoes.”

Cathy Umali said they have been joining the PAWS Halloween Party for the past three years and they make it a family event “because it is fun and the kids love it.”

For this year, they came as the Dracula family. Her three daughters – Bianca, 10, Angela, 4, and Amanda, 2 – were the children of Dracula, who turned out to be the family driver, Korex Mercado.

Duchess, a one-year-old Yorkshire Terrier, was the baby of the Dracula family.

Batman in the form of three-year-old Siberian Husky Siber also came in with his Batmobile. With him was his trusted human companion Norman Lopez, a.k.a. Robin.

The 10-month-old Shih Tzu Trudis, with a lump made of foam on her back, was the “Kampanerang Kuba,” complete with a black coffin that she dragged around.

The coffin was made of strips of rubber with a white cross. Inside the coffin was the head of a baby doll that was attached to the body of a Mickey Mouse toy.

There was also an eight-month-old Mexican Hairless Dog called Frida, with black wings and a garlic bulb around her neck. She was registered as the “Mananang-dog,” a spin-off of the local folklore manananggal. Her male owner, who pretended to be a pregnant woman, was her prey.

A total of 74 pets joined the contest and competed in several categories, including the Crypt Keeper’s Choice (most original costume); Casper’s Choice (cutest costume); Phantom’s Pick (most creative costume); Scream of the Crop (scariest costume); Midnight Society (best group in costume); Halim-Aw-Aw Award (best native dog in costume); Hali-Meow Award (best native cat in costume); Best Ghoulish Partners (best pet and owner tandem); Mr. Bogeyman (best male in costume); All Hallow’s Eve (best female in costume); and the Transylvanian Star (best pet in costume).