Fun With Dogger and Kitty

It started when I went by Dogster one day and saw that they were having another costume parade like they did at Christmas, except that they don’t call it a costume parade they call it a Holiday Stroll. Whatever, it’s a costume parade. I made the animals participate in the Christmas one and now they were going to be in the Valentines one too.

I told kitty about it and he said somthing to the effect of "over my dead body" and went off to leave a cat bomb on the bathroom rug. Dogger was more receptive to the idea because NO is not a part of her vovabulary, she hears it but she isn’t sure what it means. She thinks it might mean "Let’s play chase!" she also thinks that "Put That Down" means "Swallow It Whole". ESL classes have not been successful.

But before I or we could play dress up I needed props. Dogger will wear a hat, but I used the hat idea for the last stroll and I don’t want to reuse the theme again so soon. I want to keep it fresh, when people see my animals I want them to stand out, I want to be the Annie Leibowitze of amateur pet photography! My little animals are going to pop. Damn it.

So.

Props. If I’m going to stick with the no hats pledge I’m going to have to find something else. I doubt that either animal would wear cheapo Wal-Mart Valentines themed lingerie and they probably don’t make lingerie for those with out shoulders or boobs ( the average Wal-Mart shopper does not have a chin). Kitty would really not wear clothing and if he was somehow, drugged and restrained for the pictures, he would find a way to make sure he had red eyes in all of them. He is also very small and you can’t find really cute clothes for cats - although I have entertained thoughts of themed onesies for him, I don’t think he would co-operate and I can’t see him sitting still for fittings.

So. Props. I couldn’t use a cardboard heart because those puppies are really expensive before Valentines Day and Dogger would only use it for a chew toy and that wouldn’t photograph well at all and gawd knows she can’t have chocolate and I don’t need it. So, no boxes, no lingerie, no hats. I was running out of ideas and time.

I didn’t need to dress the animals! I couyld bring the Valentines to them! I could plop them in front of or on a Valentines Scene and forgo costumes and props all together! This could be fun and since I wouldn’t need much, cheap and reuseable as well. I couldn’t think how I was going to use it but I was going to have it on stand by, just in case the King and Queen of Hearts costume idea I had for them didn't work out. I went to Wal-Mart and bought a yard of valentine-y fabric and went on my way.

The first use was as a stage, I put it on the ottoman and arranged the animals in turn on it, these were all right but I was still not satisfied. Then It came to me Olan Mills! All I needed to do was fix the fabric to a wall and put the animals in front of it! This worked out much better and it was easier to keep the animals in one place. With Kitty I put him on a chair with a red pillow and put them both in front of the fabric, it looked way, way cool. Kitty looked a little homicidal, but not as much as he does in a hat so those pictures turned out fine. Dogger, Doggers look a little like mug shots from My Little Pony land, she looks a little like she got busted for grand theft gumdrop.

On Valentines Day, I’ll post the "winners".