Fashion goes to the dogs in New York

NEW YORK - Fashion went to the dogs on Friday, and the crowd went wild.

Canine models loped and pranced in Target's "Doggie Show," capping off the week of high fashion shows with a production so much fun that even the haughtiest fashionista had to smile.

Labrador retrievers, French bulldogs and Jack Russell terriers filled what would normally be the catwalk in Target doggie goggles, vests, leashes and foul-weather boots, to the sounds of Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog" and other aptly chosen music.

The models stopped to greet the many socialite lapdogs in the audience, exchanging sniffs instead of the typical fashion-kisses. The collection was greeted not with the standard wolf whistles but with barks of appreciation.

Tiny Yorkshire terriers opted not to walk but to travel down the runway in fancy carriers, held by normally stone-faced models who couldn't keep a straight face.

The dogs were all professionals who appear in commercials and advertisements, and one dog could not resist showing off by rolling over and playing dead on the runway - a no-no in any other fashion show.

Others stopped to scratch, another fashion show no-no.

A fluffy gray poodle strutted like a contender in next week's Westminster Kennel Club dog show.

"I love this," said Willie Ninja, creative director for EON Model Management, sitting in the audience. "This is one of the funnest shows."

The "Doggie Show" came at the end of a week of shows in New York, including Oscar de la Renta, Bill Blass, Carolina Herrera, Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs.

- REUTERS