We had several funny moments with Olivia over the years. I'd like to share some of those with you.
The Race
In 1993 I saw a blurb in the local paper that there was to be a K9 race held in St.Paul. In conjunction with the Humane Society, there was to be a 5K race in which owner & dog ran together as a team. Well, having spent 3/4's of my life running in various road-races and participating in triathlons I could not resist entering Olivia and I.
We trained together for a few weeks. Olivia got use to staying right by me on her leash and to not jump in front of me. She was doing great and it brought us even closer together.
The day of the race we got right up on the line for the start. There were a lot of dogs of all sizes. But Olivia and I were very confident we would be victorious. We were a TEAM!
There was no gun so as to not startle the dogs. But the start was pure chaos anyway. Dogs went after each other and leashes became tangled and it was absolute hilarity for the spectators. But Olivia and I got off fairly clean. We found ourselves up near the lead pack after things thinned out and order was restored.
We kept moving up as we ran. Liv and I passed dog after dog until we were in the lead pack of runners. With less than a mile remaining, I started to position us to be able to make a kick at the end and not be boxed in by the other owner-dog teams.
We could see the finish. And I was just about to tell Olivia to kick it into high gear when I felt the leash go taut. I got yanked back and when I turned around to see why, there was Olivia stopping to urinate.....in the middle of the street...in front of the finish line crowd....as dogs passed on both sides.
We still finished 3rd and still have the plaque that was presented to us. We never did race again. But that one was a thrill.
The Canoe
Each summer we make a trip to Strawberry Lake to spend time with my parents who have been camping there each summer for as long as I can remember. The summer of 1993 was no different. We made the 4-hour drive to a little north of Detroit Lakes and found ourselves back at Strawberry.
One afternoon we were a little bored so I decided it would be a great idea to take out the canoe and go onto the lake. I also decided it would be a great idea to take Olivia out with us.
Olivia had been out on a boat with us many times but never a canoe. She also loved, I mean absolutely loved being in the water. So, I should have seen this one coming.
Jackie, myself, and Olivia all got into the canoe. Liv was in the middle. We paddled out and began to go along the shoreline about 50-yards from shore. My grandmother and mother were also on shore and called out to us and waved. That was all that Liv needed. It was as if she heard "treat!" being called out.
Olivia bounded out of the canoe, which immediately capsized. Jackie was frantic when she surfaced thinking that Olivia was drowning as she could not find her anywhere. I walked (walked because we were standing in about 2-feet of water) over to my wife and pointed to the shore. There was Olivia, shaking herself dry in front of my grandmother and mother...who were now shrieking about the wet dog.
Now that was funny!
Thin Ice
Along one of our usual walking paths are a series of ponds connected by canals. In the summer, we always had to worry about Olivia stopping to have her fill of goose droppings when the geese came during the nesting season. In the winter, we would let her off the leash and she would fly around from pond to pond along the canals darting in and out of rushes and reeds. She was in her element.
One unseasonably warm winter day in 1996, we had let her off her leash when she spied a muskrat. Off she went like a rocket chasing that muskrat who was looking for one thing...open water.
The muskrat found the open water and Olivia was unable to put on the brakes in time to stop on the slushy ice. In she went, head first, and with no muskrat to show for it.
Now wet and angry, she came bounding back to us where she was consoled over the indignity of losing to the muskrat.
And was a little wiser for it.
