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Each year, October 31 is filled with youth dressed up in costumes trick-or-treating for Halloween. 

On Saturday, Oct. 26, Legacy Grove Park hosted a group of pets dressed up for the holiday spirit. 

The 3rd-annual Howl-o-Ween Dog Costume Contest featured approximately 40-50 furry friends wearing various outfits. 

“I thought today went very fantastic. I think we had over 75 people come out on this…chilly fall day,” said Anna Campomanes, event and marketing coordinator of Legacy Greenscapes. “It was just really great to see all the regulars come out and dress up too.” 

Dogs were dressed up in a variety of outfits, some as iconic figures such as Chucky from the film Child’s Play, while others, such as one with hair rollers pinned to its head and being called a housewife, demonstrated originality. 

As in a typical pageant, each dog was shown to the public during a dog walk, while local citizen Brett Cheuvront served as the emcee, introducing each dog to the crowd. 

There were four award categories: Small, Medium, Large, Crowd Favorite, and Best in Show Dog. 

Each was judged on criteria such as creativity, originality, and effort, with bonus points awarded for home and handmade costumes. 

As the event was ongoing, booths for organizations including the Clark County Animal Shelter and FairyTails Pet Adoptions were present. The latter provided an opportunity to take photos with pets. 

Ultimately, amongst the many great costumes, winners were announced. 

The winner in the small dog category went to a pair of pugs named Baby and Jovi, dressed as the alien “E.T.” from the well-known Steven Spielberg film and a character from the Disney film “Up.” 

In the medium dogs category, the winners were Mya and Gracie, a pair of Labradoodles, who were dressed as Sandy Olsson and Danny Zuko from the classic musical romantic comedy film Grease. Their owners likewise dressed accordingly. 

The winner in the large dog category was Pierre, a golden retriever dressed up creatively as a Publisher’s Clearing House. 

The crowd favorite was Cricket, a chihuahua-shih tzu mix, who was dressed as a hot dog and riding in a wagon adorned with mustard and ketchup and with the phrase “Everything’s a Dogglar” written on the outside. 

Certainly not least, the award of Best-in-Show went to a chihuahua mix named Cookie, whose costume—titled The Claw Machine—featured one of many toy characters in a wagon with a makeshift claw located above it, similar to machines seen in arcades. 

“I just found [the idea] on Pinterest,” said owner Corinne Hammond. “She’s about six [years old].” 

As the victor, Cookie took home a $50 gift certificate to Lucky Dog Cafe. 

Campomanes added that she found the event exciting and hopes for more in the future. 

“It was very seasonally appropriate, and all the dogs dressed up in really creative costumes,” she said.