Dogs Pull Sleds Topped With Dog Chow in Televised Morningside Park Competition

What poops, loves to run around in the park, jumps up and down, and barks? If you guessed a dog owner, you’re close.

Over two dozen of our four-legged friends, ranging from the magnificent to the scrawny, all looked their best yesterday. Many competed in a weight-pulling contest for a small cash prize, pulling a small sled topped with small or large bags of dog chow.

Man’s best friends congregated in Morningside Park for the canine party-cum-competition, held by the local dog run organizers Build A Run Coalition and Training Wheels, a group that works to educate about animal abuse and train owners how to treat pets humanely. With much tail-wagging and butt-sniffing, the dogs were well-behaved and seemed to enjoy the sunny but cold afternoon.

Dotty Janotka, a Morningside Heights resident of 65 years and a member of BARC, seemed to know every dog at the park. Her seven-year-old mixed Labrador, Captain, shook paws but did not compete in the pull. “It’s good, people come out,” Janotka said, adding that in particular, “We encourage kids to come out with their pitbulls and they [Training Wheels] train their dogs to be nice dogs.”

Roderick Bradley, CC ’09, said he lived off-campus to take care of Roxanne, his two-year-old Italian greyhound. The small, hairless dog could barely stay in one place, frantic with excitement at the number of compatriots around her. “They’re the new, trendy dogs, the new Chihuahuas,” Bradley said, adding that though Roxanne wouldn’t compete in the pull, she was happy to be there. “She’s an attention whore,” he joked, pointing out a few “friends” they cross in the park. “She’s just chilling.”

As cameramen from cable sports television network ESPN drew two majestic dogs off to the side for close-ups and interviews, most of the pets and owners milled about after registering for the contest. Many knew each other from the park or previous contests, which started a few years ago. Some owners chatted around the Boaz Vaadia artpiece “Yo’ah With Dog,” an apt sculpture for the finish line of the small, pumpkin-lined pull track.

Dogs took turns dragging the sleds across the track, and if it was not quite clear exactly which dog won the competition, the point of the event seemed to be of a different breed altogether. Training Wheels offered toys and pamphlets on pet training, and no animal or owner seemed to have had a bad day.

Tom Faure can be reached at tom.faure@columbiaspectator.com.