Shortly after each year's parade is over, and the next year's parade theme is announced, the parade sponsors and participating communities start to plan their floats for the following year.

Each year, the president announces a parade theme in January and chooses a Grand Marshal during the year.

Each unit has its own audio themed to the unit, with the main parade theme played on the zone speakers.

The parade theme this year is "Heroes."

The Krewe of Barkus is a New Orleans Mardi Gras parade whose participants are dogs costumed according to a central parade theme and escorted by their human owners.

He said his sheepskin was consistent with the parade theme: The sheep "was used for the meat first."

"The Legend of Hogzilla" had proved more popular, they said, than previous parade themes like "Saluting Our Firemen" and "Good Old Days on the Farm."

Past parade themes have been "Mall Rats," "I Love the 90s," "Globe Trotters," and "Board Games."

This year's parade theme is "Preserving Our Heritage."

The 1877 parade theme, "Hades, A Dream of Momus," caused an uproar when it took aim at the Reconstruction government established in New Orleans after the Civil War.