Twenty-five dogs and one cat will model denim coats handmade by University of Arizona fashion students Thursday.

Dogs n Denim is a dog-themed fashion show that raises awareness about sustainability and the jobs service dogs perform for their handlers, with upcycled denim coats made by UA fashion students and modeled by service dogs and dogs with disabilities.

Every fall semester since 2017, University of Arizona fashion students have put on the Dogs n Denim show. The seven-week course started with nine students and now has 30 students enrolled. Elizabeth Heuisler, an assistant professor of practice in the Fashion Industry’s Science and Technology major, started the show as a way to bring in more community and give students the chance to get out of the classroom.

“The more you get a chance to apply that information ... when you get out there in the professional world, you’re ready for it,” Heuisler said.

Dogs n Denim receives no funding from the school, and the denim for the dog coats is gathered through donations. Students also leave a box with the show’s information outside places like A Loyal Companion and Rescue Me Marana. In previous years, they’ve used classroom chairs to save money. This year, with $400 left over from last year’s show, they’ve been able to do more, including making trophies for the dogs.

The class is split into several committees, including logistics, coat creation, merchandise and more, which work independently until it’s time to craft the show.

Blake Liddell, 21, a student on the coat creation committee, has a medical alert dog named Jack. During fittings, handlers and designers sit down together and discuss the vision for the piece. For Jack, they decided on a blackjack theme, and the coat will have two large dice sewn onto the side. Making sure handlers have something that represents the bond between them and their animals is crucial, as the coats are given to them afterward as thanks for their participation.

The event also aims to highlight service dogs’ skills beyond companionship. One dog, Penny, was assigned to a veteran named Mario who has night terrors. Dogs can tell when someone with night terrors is about to have an episode and wake them.

“These are things you can’t explain,” Heuisler said. “It’s just something the dog feels more than we do.”

One year, Mario and Penny were in the show together, and the next year Mario was diagnosed with cancer. After he died in January, Heuisler reached out to his family to see if they’d still like to have Penny in the program. His daughter wrote back, thrilled.

“I get choked up when I say this. His last wish was that his dog would go to another person who needs a service dog,” Heuisler said.

In honor of Mario, the program will include a page called “Penny’s Page.”

“It just makes you have a whole new outlook on what dogs do,” Heuisler said.

Each year, the event exceeds Heuisler’s expectations. Her next goal is to collaborate with the theater department’s hands-on design classes.

She’d also like to find a way to secure parking passes for volunteers.

“These people are coming and a lot of them are handicapped or have handicapped dogs,” Heuisler said. “I want to give them passes so they don’t have to pay because they’re coming here for the school event.”

One of those volunteers, Sofia Ripstein, 20, is participating with her guide dog, Heather. Ripstein signed up after seeing a request for service dogs on Instagram. She and the designers decided on a pinkish theme to match Heather’s dog tag, one of Ripstein’s favorite colors.

“I’m really excited to see what it’s about,” Ripstein said. “And see the other dogs and what they’re like, and see how Heather does.”

Ripstein said Heather has always been good in crowds and she’s confident the guide dog will be up for her first “modeling gig.”

Heuisler said finishing the show is bittersweet. She’s relieved to be done and able to relax, but she also gets to see the hard work pay off and knows it won’t be the same again.

“I see the students, how excited they are, the handlers are so excited,” Heuisler said. “And I hear from people saying, ‘I never knew the dogs could do this.’”

Dogs n Denim runs from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, at the McClelland Park Courtyard, 650 N. Park Ave. General admission is free and open to everyone, and guests can RSVP online. VIP tickets cost $10 and include front-row seats, a student-made denim tote bag and merchandise donated by local sponsors.

Lily Cottam is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and intern at Tucson Spotlight.

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