July Fourth Parade Draws 12,000, But Dogs Told to Stay Home

Veteran groups, elected officials, schools and community organizations showed their patriotic colors at Novato’s July Fourth parade Thurday, a longtime city tradition and the largest parade in the entire North Bay, according to organizers.

Residents began setting out chairs early as 5am, hoping to snag the best seat along the parade route. By 6am, Grant Avenue was covered with seats and by 10:30am, crowds four to five rows deep lined downtown, waving to floats and snapping picture.

“It was a beautiful parade and it’s come a long way,” said Kathy Nickel, chairwoman of the parade, now in its 21st consecutive year.

Before the parade, the Presbyterian Church of Novato held their Buckaroo Breakfast and later Banjo Dave Marty, Abe van der Meule, People of Note and other groups entertained.

Some residents attending with pets were surprised to learn dogs were not allowed this year.

“No family dogs on the 4th? What's next, no kids?” grumbled one Patch reader.

Dogs have never been allowed at the parade, said Nickel, the event chairwoman, citing a Novato city ordinance that bans animals, with the exception of service dogs, at civic functions.

“You can bring your poodle and it’s wonderful, but you can have another dog that is aggressive and creates problems,” Nickel said. “The dogs relieve themselves right in front others and that’s not nice.”

Dogs are also not allowed at the Novato Farmers’ Market and at food and wine events organized throughout the year. Asked about why organizers decided to enforce the ordinance this year after being less than vigilant in the past, Nickel said that many more people brought animals this year.

"Obviously, we can't have 100 percent enforcement with 10,000 people present, but volunteers were told to tell residents that dogs were not allowed," she said. "We always hope that people read our site and do the right thing, but that doesn't always happen."

Did you attend the parade? Have pictures? If so, please send them to Local Editor Karina Ioffee at karina@patch.com and we'll add them to the mix. 

What do you think of the city's ordinance that bans animals at civic events like the parade?  Is it unfair to dog owners?