| Mardi Paws 2008 |
Above: Mystic Krewe of Mardi Paws 2008!
Mardi Gras is part of a series of carnival days held in Roman Catholic countries between Twelfth Night (Epiphany) and Ash Wednesday.
The origin of these carnivals were tied to pre-Christian spring fertility rites and the most famous modern Mardi Gras festivities are those held in New Orleans, Louisiana; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Nice, France; and Cologne, Germany.
Although the first American Mardi Gras was celebrated near New Orleans in 1699, it took hold in the 1800s and the official parade organizations started to form in the mid-1800s. (Learn more about the history of Mardi Gras.)
The official colors of Mardi Gras are purple, green and gold (representing justice, faith and power) but today the celebrations have really gone to the dogs and everyone is having a howling good time while raising funds for charities.
Now at one time I only knew of a couple of animal krewes such as the Mystic Krewe of Mardi Paws and the Mystic Krewe of Barkus but there are more canine krewes whose festivities appear to go back to the late 1990s.
Krewe of Mardi Paws
Each year a new theme is picked by the Krewe of Mardi Paws and this year Mardi Paws Tunes in to TV.
Some of the categories:
- Desperate Housedogs
- Big Dog, The Bounty Hunter
- America’s Next Top Doggie
- CSI: The Dog Pound
- Grey’s Barkatomy
- I Pug Lucy
- Little Doghouse on the Prairie
- Howligan’s Island
- Doggy, The Explorer
- I Dream of Milkbones
- Leave it to Bow-Wow
- Sponge Bark, Square Pants
- Dancing With The Dogs
- The Young & The Barkless
- Law and Order: D O G
- Starsky &; Pooch
- Howling Montana
- The Dogs Next Door
- The Brady Litter
You get the idea…this will be their 14th Annual Mardi Paws Celebration and will take place on Sunday, March 1, 2009 at 2:00pm.
They are the only krewe to parade after Fat Tuesday which means that they don’t have any competition! Parade proceeds benefit two of the Northshore’s non-profits, Have a Heart Through Art and the St. Tammany Spay/Neuter Program.
The group will lend its name to you if you want to celebrate Mardi Paws in your area so if you are interested, drop by their website to check it out.
| Krewe of Barkus 2008 |
Above: Video of the Krewe of Barkus during Mardi Paws!
The Mystic Krewe of Barkus theme for 2009 is BatMutt: The Bark Night
The Barkus Ball (humans only) will take place at the Windsor Court Hotel, New Orleans (300 Gravier) from 8pm to midnight, on Friday, February 13, 2009.
However the 2009 Parade will start at Armstrong Park on Sunday, February 15th at 2pm but the pawty (before, during & after parade) is open to all at no charge. Armstrong Park will open at 10:30am and is the staging area for the parade participants.
If you want to support their doggone good cause you can become a krewe member for $20 and will receive all mailings of the Krewe for one year.
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