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Spencer Pride

Festival adds Pet Parade for 2015

petFor the first time in the 9-year history of the Spencer Pride Festival, we are pleased to announce the addition of a Pet Parade to this year’s festivities!  The Spencer Pride Pet Parade is an opportunity for festival attendees to bring some of the most furry and lazy members of their family: their pets!   Responsible owners and their pets will get to strut about downtown showing our judges why they deserve to the first-ever GRAND PRIZE WINNER of the Spencer Pride Pet Parade!

Individuals interested in participating do NOT NEED TO REGISTER and there is NO REGISTRATION FEE.  Just prissy up your pampered pet and come on down!

All parade participants must meet on the south side of the Owen County Courthouse no later than 12:25 PM on Saturday, June 6.  The parade will kick off promptly at 12:30 and will make one lap around the courthouse before ending up on the courthouse lawn on the festival stage.  Participants and their owners will be announced when they arrive on the lawn at the conclusion of the parade.  At that time, judges will perform a quick evaluation of each participant.  The GRAND PRIZE WINNER will be announced at approximately 1 PM.

Parade judges (who will remain anonymous until the event) will evaluate each pet on two criteria:

1.       Color.  This year’s festival theme is “Color Our World with Pride” and we expect to see a lot of color on our pets!

2.       Personality.  A pet’s personality plays a big role in your household so why should it be any different out in public?

We are excited to be able to host this fabulous addition to the festival!  If you are interested in participating and want further information, please contact us at info@SpencerPride.org.

Other pertinent information for parade participants:

–  There is no limit to the number of entries per owner, however, all pets participating will need to be appropriately restrained and all owners will need to be responsible and clean up after their pets.

–  “Pet” is defined by Dictionary.com as “any domesticated or tamed animal that is kept as a companion and cared for affectionately.”  This means that it can be a dog, cat, iguana, or anything else that meets this definition.

–   Pets participating cannot pose a safety risk to festival attendees or other pets.   Any pet observed that poses a potential safety risk will be asked to leave the festival, along with their owner.

–   No pets are to remain in cars awaiting their participation in the parade.  This can be a serious safety issue and authorities will be contacted if it appears that any pets are put at risk by being left in a hot car.  Pets are welcome to attend the entire festival throughout the day, so there’s no reason to leave them behind, anyway.

If you don’t have a pet but want to attend the Spencer Pride Pet Parade, please do!  The event is open to the public.  Our festival is 100% free and family-friendly and lasts from 10 AM until 5 PM.  Although the pet parade is only expected to take 30 minutes from start to finish, there is an afternoon’s worth of fun activities, food, and shopping in store!  We also have live entertainment on stage all day.   Festival attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket and set up a picnic on the courthouse lawn for the entire afternoon.