Animal Antics Rule During Fantasy Fest Pet Masquerade

Animal antics took center stage in Key West Wednesday evening during the 2010 Pet Masquerade and Parade, a wacky costume competition for barking, meowing and squawking revelers and their human companions. The showcase of “animal magnetism” was a highlight of Key West’s 10-day Fantasy Fest costuming and masking festival that continues through Halloween. Dressed-up dogs, cats and exotic birds competed for prizes on an oceanfront stage at the Casa Marina in the offbeat competition. The event drew about 1,000 spectators and nearly 60 entries, ranging from pet-and-person duos to costumed groups of people and animals. Standouts included a flock of “bird people” with a canine-inhabited cuckoo clock, a leather-clad dog in a tiny hot rod, a “cocktail-loving” cockatoo, a hairless cat in goggles, and an Asian ensemble starring a Great Pyrenees dog as a giant panda.