Saxonburg Pet Parade to kick off annual fireman’s carnival
The annual Saxonburg Fireman’s Carnival, organized by the Saxonburg Volunteer Fire Company, is a tradition that has been a part of the borough for nearly a century. This year’s fireman’s carnival is a five-day affair and kicks off Tuesday, June 25 with the annual Saxonburg pet parade.
“I believe this is our 93rd year for the carnival,“ said carnival chairman Paul Donaldson. ”It’s been around an awful long time.“
Registration is free and is done on the day of the parade, starting around 6 p.m. at the Saxonburg Memorial Church on Main Street, where the parade begins.
There are almost no restrictions on the pets and pet owners that can march in the parade. The organizers allow just about any animal to take part in the parade, as long as they do not pose a danger to the general public, that is are poisonous or aggressive.
“All pets are welcome as long as it’s not dangerous to anybody else,” Donaldson said.
The event officially kicks off at 6:15 p.m. with the “blessing of the pets,” a tradition that became part of the pet parade in recent years.
“It’s something they have started doing over the last couple of years,” Donaldson said. “Some area churches come, and their pastors do a blessing for the animals.”
The parade begins at 6:30, starting from the church and taking a left at Pittsburgh Street before finishing at the Saxonburg VFC carnival grounds on Horne Avenue.
Donaldson says the parade attracts all sorts of animals, not just dogs and cats.
“We see cats and dogs. We've had horses and donkeys, and we've had camels before,” Donaldson said. “We've had people walking skunks. We’ve had a turkey on a leash.”
During a typical year, according to Donaldson, the parade attracts hundreds of people and pets, with some of the humans dressing themselves and their pets in matching costumes.
“A lot of families put a lot of thought into this and put a theme together,” Donaldson said. “People are welcome to dress their pets in costumes. There are times that the whole family comes dressed in different outfits to match the pet.”
A team of judges will hand out awards for the most exceptional pets to take part in the parade. These include, among others, Biggest Pet, Smallest Pet, and Most Original Pet.
“One of the categories is Smallest Pet, so they’ll come with spiders or goldfish or different things,” Donaldson said. “People put a lot of thought into this.
The pet parade is just the first day of festivities for the fireman’s carnival, which will also feature the Fireman’s Water Battle on Wednesday, June 26 and the traditional fireman’s parade on Thursday, June 27.
The carnival itself will last from Tuesday, June 25 through Saturday, June 29. There will be no fees for admission into the carnival grounds.
