Kari Andreschefski had no appetite for the hot dogs being served Saturday afternoon at PG Zombie Fest.
She'd already eaten her pitbull, Champion, the pooch's punishment for infecting her with zombie blood when he bit into her right leg. The oozing wound of her missing flesh was evidence of the attack, but before she joined the ranks of the undead she got her revenge.
An empty leash and collar was all she had left to remind her of Champion, her pet for the last 13 years. However, neither she nor her human companion, the twitching pale-skinned, scar-faced Nels Hansen, were showing any remorse. They were in great spirits as they awaited their turns to be judged in the costume contest.
"I ate my dog because he ate me," said a smiling Andreschefski. "We went for a walk and all of a sudden he turned nasty. He was great friendly dog and I tried keeping him as long as I could.
"I wanted to dress him up and bring him here but I was afraid he might be too in-character and I didn't want people to get too scared. I'm still half a zombie. I'm infected, but I haven't gone into full rot yet."
The 31-year-old says she's been getting dressed up in costume this time of year with Hansen for the last seven years to get in the spirit of cosplay for their annual Halloween in July house party. Both has their zombie makeup applied onsite downtown in return for a donation.
"This fell on the same day as the party so we came down to make it a zombie theme this year," said Hansen, 46.
"We decided we would do an all-day thing this year. We wanted to support it because it goes to charity (Zombie Fest proceeds will be donated to the the Prince George Humane Society). I love it that the zombies are coming out for charity instead of eating people."
Dylan George kept his appetite for human flesh in check but menaced the crowds by swinging his axe, decked out in fur-trimmed body armour. His face was covered by frightening skeleton-like mask under a helmet sporting turned-up animal horns at either side. Inspired by the monster-like Draugr from the game Skyrim, George teamed up with his wife Karen, who was dressed with her head completely wrapped in bandages with just one eye exposed - a re-creation of the bloodthirsty nurse in the movie Silent Hill. Together, they put their scare tactics to work, with unintentional consequences.
"I love kids and want to give them hugs but all the kids are running away from me," said Nurse Karen. "It's good to see the community get together just for something fun. We are raising money for a good cause."
Draugr, the undead Viking, and his creepy wife each won prizes for best costume in their respective adult male and female categories, chosen by a panel of five judges which included mayor Lyn Hall and The Walking Dead TV actor Juan Gabriel Pareja.
Pareja, who played the character Morales in Season 1 of the highly-rated AMC series, brought his trusty baseball bat with him for his first trip to Canada as the featured guest at PG Zombie Fest. The 37-year-old native of Houston, Texas used the bat to put five or six zombies out of their misery in the show. Morales was last seen in Episode 5 leaving the main cast of characters behind in downtown Atlanta with his wife and two kids in tow on their way to Birmingham, Ala., to check on their family. He's hoping to get the call to return to the show, which has helped spark a worldwide wave of interest in zombie cosplay.
"Morales is still alive and maybe we'll see him show up to save the day," Pareja said.
"I don't do a lot of these shows but I do some conventions here and there. This is a great turnout, the music's great, we had nice little zombie crawl and some impressive costumes and everybody's excited."
YouTube videos showing professional makeup techniques are making it easier for people to create realistic effects and Pareja says that's helping fuel the zombie craze.
"There's definitely been a kind zeitgeist and for the last few years I think with all the technology it speaks to the zombification of the masses," he said. "The show is incredibly popular. It's a global phenomenon and that has created a good buzz for people to come out."
About 50 people, including a few families with young kids, dressed up for the second annual event. One of the ghoulish participants was Trevor Favrick, who depends on a wheelchair for his mobility. On Saturday he was unable to escape the bared teeth of a crazed zombie, who left his mark on a blood-encrusted cheek. His friend pushing the chair accepted the blame, saying he wasn't fast enough to provide an escape for Favrick, who nonetheless was enjoying the festivities.
"I'm impressed that we got to meet a guy from the real Walking Dead," said Favrick. "It's the first time I've done this and I think it's kind of neat."
The agonized groans of the undead as the staggered along city streets in their costumes in a noon-hour death march melted into the Sounds of Summer, a mini-music festival featuring local bands Violent Night, Phat Funk, Mathias Rock, The Flying Machine, and The Statistics. The bands performed on the steps of city hall, then moved to Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park late in the afternoon for the zombie dance.
