Puppy Prom!
I never thought I would say it, but Bill O’Reilly was right! Gay marriage has been legal in New York for less than two years, and we’re already dating our pets! My butch girl (Shepherd rescue) has social anxiety issues and was happiest at home, so perhaps O’Reilly would almost approve, since I was on a “heterosexual” date to the dance, albeit with a Chihuahua. All joking aside—last week I had the very fun opportunity to attend with one of my dogs, the 1st annual BarkBox Puppy Prom here in NYC, and it was adorable!
The Puppy Prom was basically everything your high school prom wasn’t: fun, reasonable volume of music, artisanal snacks, no catty behaviour, oh, and of course, adorable puppies! Unfortunately, it did at times feel about as straight as most people’s high school prom, but there were a few LGBTQ folks around, really we were all talking to the dogs so the humans and our orientations were for the most part completely irrelevant. With my tiny tuxedo-clad date in my arms (Mercury wore the tux that he got for the commitment party my partner and I had 8 years ago) I went queer femme over the top for my own outfit, and wore a dress covered in rainbow-recoloured photorealistic puppies!
I was glad we dressed up; I’ve never seen so many dogs in tiny suits and sparkling dresses before! We entered BarkBox Prom under a balloon arch before dogs walked the red carpet by pawperatzi who crawled around on the floor all night to get the very best shots of all the pups. Once into the prom, the pups were able to sip from water bowls at the bar, socialize, and of course what would be a prom without dancing? The dogs definitely knew all the moves to Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off!” A highlight of the evening was the crowing of the Prom Queen and King—two rescue dogs available for adoption from NYC’s Animal Haven shelter.
My dog Mercury who is very comfortable in large crowds of dogs and people had a blast! He got to walk the red carpet, met tons of cute dogs, and even got to pose in a photo booth! The latter has been one of my silly dog-obsessed dreams for years! If you’re thinking of taking your dog to an event like this be sure to bring lots of treats, and be aware of your dogs comfort in loud and crowded spaces to ensure it’s a fun evening for you both. We had lots of dogs, cute tiny senior dogs (the oldest dog I met was 17!), lots of pampered puppies, and had fun conversations with lots of doggie pawrents, I even met a dog who had her own business card to help folks find her Instagram account!
This was an event attended by some very lucky, very spoiled pups! There was lots of talk about daycares, dog walker schedules, custom accessories from Etsy, and finalizing guest lists and finding the right space to host your dog’s birthday party! I was right at home amongst all these dog-obsessed folks. I also found myself feeling pretty normal, and even almost low-key in my obsessive focus on our canine kiddos!
Mercury and I had such a great time, and the event was for such a good cause of helping to raise money and awareness about homeless dogs in NYC. We are definitely planning to attend next year’s prom!
More info: www.barkbox.com
