A century has passed since people first paraded their pets through the heart of Bend on the Fourth of July.

Dogs, cats, deer, badgers, gold fish, chickens, squirrels, ducks, oxen, calves, a pet eagle and baby coyotes have all participated, according to the Bend Park & Recreation District.

But the century-old tradition still brings the chance to see something new.

Baby kangaroos, for example.

As crowds gathered to begin the 2024 Bend Pet Parade at Harmon Park on Thursday, Spring Still cradled a one-year old baby marsupial, named Hopper Harrison, in a star-spangled wrap mimicking a mother’s pouch.

For many of the people who flocked to pet him, it was their first time petting a kangaroo.

That thrill is why 8,000 to 10,000 people return to the pet parade each year — and why that number continues to grow, said Michael Egging, recreation manager for the Bend Park & Recreation District.

Bend has held the parade 97 times, stopping only in 1943 due to World War II and in 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s certainly one of the bigger community events that we have here, and we’re super proud to offer that to the community, and really have that small town feel for as long as we can,” he said.

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Fourth of July Pet Parade brings small-town feel back to Bend

The park district doesn’t register people or pets for the parade, so it’s not certain whether any of the previous pet parades ever featured a kangaroo.

Spring Still and her sister, Kim Still, adopted the one-year-old joey from Gramma Roses Petting Zoo in Crook County after his mother couldn’t produce milk. Kim Still, who has cared for over 64 newborn kittens and various farm animals, volunteered to care for Harrison. The family adopted him March 1 and he now visits retirement facilities and local schools. He loves people, the Stills said.

“We noticed that he brings so much joy to the people that we have been taking him to retirement facilities, memory care facilities,” said Kim Still.

Not all pets were so exotic. Thursday’s parade brought out a wide variety of animal companions, from golden retrievers to horses to chickens.

For her first year participating in the parade, 12-year-old Rowan Smith rode in on her horse, Beau. She’s been riding horses since age five, but Beau has been clomping through the Pet Parade since 2008.

Rowan has been planning Beau’s decorations for quite some time, patting glitter on shooting star stencils in red, white and blue. Her parents, Liza Reverman and Chris Smith, said they were “support staff” as their daughter prepared Beau for the show.

Cuddled in Rachel Shaver’s arms enjoying the Fourth of July heat was Aarya the tegu, a large lizard native to South America. Shaver is a veterinary assistant at East Bend Animal Hospital.

“People love her. She’s super used to kids, events. She likes the warm weather, so this is perfect for her,” Shaver said. “I love bringing her out and giving people the opportunity to see these animals that they wouldn’t have seen otherwise.”

Pets don’t have to be present — or even alive — to be part of the parade.

Avery Childers taped a printed photo on her bike of her cat, Jax, who has feline immunodeficiency virus, keeping him indoors. Paul Bishop’s pet rooster, Dusty — a styrofoam statue draped in lifelike feathers — rode in a cardboard box on the back of his bike. Amelia Harper toted a wagon filled with 30 stuffed bears and gnomes.

11-year-old Lilly Kamaya watched with her family from the side of Newport Avenue as the animals sauntered by. She recalled carrying a toy dog through the parade as a toddler.

“The wooden dog eventually got tired,” she said.

The Kamaya family has returned to the pet parade nearly every year since they moved to Bend in July 2014 — a month they chose specifically to attend the event. When the parade was canceled during the pandemic, they participated when the Valhalla Heights neighborhood organized its own event to carry on the tradition, said Kate Kamaya, Lilly’s mother.

“It’s so Bend,” Kate Kamaya said. “It’s fun to see all the dogs in their costumes and the different breeds. And there’s always a surprise.”