Dauphin Island Mayor Jeff Collier watched Mardi Gras go to the dogs on Saturday, but he wasn’t complaining about it: The island’s third parade of the season was the Mystic Krewe of Salty Paws, an event tailor-made for dog lovers.

“There’s not a lot of opportunities for dogs at Mardi Gras,” said Ari Rellinger, an organizer with the Animal Rescue Foundation. The event, which benefits ARF, is sponsored by the Dauphin Island Chamber of Commerce. Rellinger said that for this year’s edition about 100 dogs had been signed up, along with “all their assorted people.”

Among them was Baby Monster, whose custodian Jennifer Latour was struggling to keep the head portion of her pet’s alligator costume in place while hampered by the hook that was part of her own pirate costume. “I think she’s a little overwhelmed at the moment,” Latour said before the parade. “This is her first big gathering.” She added that bringing Baby Monster to the event was a step in the process that began when she found the dog, then pregnant, living wild near a gas station and rescued her with the help of ARF.

And speaking of hooks, one of the winners in the “most creative” category was a piratical hound with a hook replacing … its tail.

The area’s biggest parades are huge productions that require barricades, scores of police officers and a massive cleanup crew. This was about as far from that as it’s possible to get: A relaxed, informal stroll looping a couple of blocks from the island’s water tower plaza, with some of the dogs making the voyage on foot and while some of their pampered colleagues rolled along carts.

The weather couldn’t have been finer. “We’ve been really fortunate” said Collier of Mardi Gras 2023 on the island.

The season will bring at least one more pet parade: The Mystic Mutts of Revelry, which will take to the streets of downtown Fairhope at 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 11. The event’s theme is “Top Dog.”

A schedule of area parades is available here.

For continuing coverage, visit www.al.com/mardigras.

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