There were a bunch of stuffed shirts at the Desfile de Los Niños (Children's Pet Parade) through downtown Santa Fe on Saturday morning. Stuffed with little doggies, that is.

A number of the community's smaller furry friends sought refuge from the cold while huddled in their owners' coats and sweatshirts.

But the chilly temps and gray skies didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the humans who turned out to participate and watch the perennially popular event at the 299th Fiesta de Santa Fe.

More than 100 entrants registered to march in the procession and compete for cash prizes in a dozen categories.

Dogs dominated, but the parade also featured chickens, rats, a snake and a trio of turtles in a Tupperware box.

There also were humans dressed like animals, animals dressed like humans and in some cases — such as the little dog wearing an elephant costume — animals dressed as other animals.

A group of nearly 100 Carlos Gilbert Elementary School students and parents dressed up as characters from their favorite books in a group effort to promote literacy.

The school won $100 and a plaque as top entry in the category "Best Message to Other Children," thanks to the creative literary interpretations of students such as Gary Brandle, 11, who incorporated two geese into his portrayal of the story of Jack and the Beanstalk.

Brandle, who said his geese don't have names but sometimes "go after" him with their heads down when he walks away from them, also raises chickens, ducks and turkeys.

His geese stood in a cage, looking like they meant to hatch the two real ostrich eggs Brandle's parents had hollowed out and spray-painted gold before placing them in the cage. Attached to the cage was a thick, 7-foot-tall sunflower stalk, atop of which a billowy mound of cotton seemed to float. Above that, a tiny house perched.

Marissa Snyder, a parent of two children at Carlos Gilbert, portrayed the character of Hester Prynne from Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Scarlet Letter, boldly putting herself on display among the townspeople by sporting a big, red letter A on her chest.

"Isn't it cool?" she said. "It makes people think. They say, where is your husband?"

Big-scale productions weren't the only entrants noticed by the judges.

A passel of Smurfs (the 1980s-era cartoon characters) complete with a papier mâché toadstool abode — won "Best Character."

"My wife comes up with these ideas and I just execute them," said Papa Smurf Peter Paul Davis, who also reported that he had been up late the night before putting the finishing touches on the mushroom mansion. "Can I go to bed after this?"

"We really don't do it for the prize," said Marsha Davis. "We do it to be a crowd pleaser."

A set of almost-3-year-old triplets dressed as Dalmatians named Princess, Lucky and Spot also won the hearts of the crowd, as well as one of two Judge Meritorious Awards.

The triplets' mother, city employee Consuelo Pena, said her husband was away hunting this weekend, and she had the costumes left over from Halloween, so she figured she "might as well do something fun" with them. Pena said she would spend the $100 prize money on her kids, treating them to snacks and toys Saturday at the vending booths on the Plaza.

Ten-year-old tap dancer Eliseo Arreola — who was dressed as Rich Uncle Pennybags from the game Monopoly — wowed the judges with his spectacular tap solo. And, along with his dog Ralphie — a curly haired schnauzer-poodle mix called a schnoodle — the duo won "Best Pet-Child Look Alike."

A dozen prizes and $1,200 in checks were awarded to entrants in the various categories Saturday morning.

But almost every entrant got some love from Andy Lee Lopez y Sandoval, who is portraying Don Diego de Vargas in this year's Fiesta court. He gave a hearty "Que viva!" shout to contestants as they passed in front of the judges' platform.

Contact Phaedra Haywood at 986-3068 or phaywood@sfnewmexican.com.

CHILDREN'S PET PARADE WINNERS

A dozen of the more than 100 entries in the annual Desfile de los Niños won prizes in the following categories:

• Hill Stomper: Best Musical Group

• Jayda Cooth: Best Original Entry

• Fairy Wranglers: Best Hysterical Theme

• Route 66: Best Historical Theme

• Saenz and Crow family: Best Fiesta Theme

• Smurfs Visit Santa Fe: Best Character

• Carlos Gilbert Elementary: Best Message to Other Children

• Eliseo Arreola: Best Pet-Child Look Alike

• Triplet Dalmatians: Judge Meritorious Award

• Prevent Forest Fires: Judge Meritorious Award

• Santa Fe Rocks Stars: Best Family

FIESTA DE SANTA FE EVENTS

Sunday

9:30 a.m.: Solemn Procession, from Palace of the Governors to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.

10 a.m.: Pontifical Mass, the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi.

Plaza events

1 p.m. Sunday: Desfile de la Gente (Historical/Hysterical Parade), downtown.

5:30 p.m. Sunday: Closing ceremonies, Santa Fe Plaza.

7 p.m. Sunday: Mass of Thanksgiving and Candlelight Procession, the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi.