Best of breed

The Halloween Dog Parade in Tompkins Square Park this year featured a pirate, a tiger, an alligator, two lobsters, two hot dogs (one with mustard, one with ketchup), Wonder Yorkie, a boxer in warpaint and feathered headdress, a Pomeranian in a red vinyl skirt, a lugubrious bulldog dressed as a bumble bee, Miss Doggy and Kermit D. Dog (accompanied by human companions in full Cookie, Oscar and Big Bird outfits), an iPoodle, a leftover Chinese takeout bulldog (and a four-legged Chinese menu) plus maybe fifty or sixty other variously costumed pooches and their handlers. Considering the number of animals involved, it was a fairly orderly affair, although some of the participants occasionally had to be hastily separated. Still, the backstage brawling and shrill barking was probably no worse than you'd see at any other fashion show.

I have to admit that I find animals dressed as people a little unnerving, but they were picturesque enough that I put aside my misgivings and snapped away happily.