Who says only humans get to enjoy Halloween?
Pets, specifically dogs, across the United States have also been celebrating spooky season with their parents dressing them up in unique, and in some cases, over-the-top costumes. Here's a look at how pets have been getting in on the Halloween fun.
Marissa Monteleone, a Georgia resident who owns three dogs, told USA TODAY over email she "loves Halloween" and wanted to dress her pets up in costumes "that are not only cute but comfortable."
Video shared by Monteleone shows her 6-year-old German Shepherd named Astro dressed as "Batdog"; Cooper, a less than one-year-old retriever mix dressed as a "Superdog"; and Pluto, an 8-year-old American Bully, dressed as a vampire. The three, in the video, also show off their costumes with an adorable dog walk.
Pets take over New York City during Tompkins Square Parade
In New York City, the Halloween spirit was in full display at the Tompkins Square Parade on Oct. 19. Approximately 300 pets participated in the 35th annual parade, New York Dog Parade spokesperson Diana Rissetto told USA TODAY.
Videos and pictures from the event show dogs dressed up in a multitude of creative costumes, ranging from peacocks to Paddington the Bear and more.
Watch pair of golden retrievers channel popular cartoon characters
Golden retrievers Chandler Bing, who just turned 5, and Ernie's owner, Katie Palamara, have been getting creative and put together DIY costumes for her pets. Palamara, who is based in Pittsburgh, told PEOPLE in 2023 she loves Halloween and getting dressed up for it.
“I was trick-or-treating until I was 18 years old, and I've always DIY-ed my own costumes,” she told the outlet. “So of course, just the next step when I got a dog was to dress my dog up. I've got a creative bone, and I just love doing DIY projects.”
This year, she put together a couple of costumes, inspired by cartoon characters, including CatDog from the TV show "CatDog" and Slinky Dog from Disney Pixar's "Toy Story" franchise.
Dogs in costumes enjoy treats for Halloween
Dogs aboard the K9 Konvoy school bus in Oconto, Wisconsin, a small city about 150 miles north of Milwaukee, enjoyed Halloween treats as they showed off their costumes.
The doggy school bus, operated by Hope Mehlberg, transports between 22 and 26 dogs of all kinds of breeds, sizes and ages every day, picking them up from their homes and taking them to a three-acre park, where the dogs play and socialize with each other, Mehlberg previously told USA TODAY.
Contributing: Jenna Hecker, Kendall Malinchock, Christina Cardona, Mike Fant / USA TODAY
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: From peacocks to cartoons, dogs across US show off creative Halloween costumes
Reporting by Saman Shafiq, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

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