The weather promised to be oppressively hot, so I skipped most of the events that preceded the races—the parade, the agility contest, the costume competition—and planned to arrive an hour or so before the start time.
However, my plan went awry when the event officials decided to race the dogs earlier because of the climbing heat. By the time we arrived, they were dismantling the “track” already and the crowds had departed for home.
To be clear, this was no ordinary dog track. It was a Dachshund-only derby—part of a fundraising event for a local Dachshund rescue organization. There’s no hare or robotic enticement for the pooches to chase, no cruel training methods or neglectful caretaking. There’s only a bunch of tiny pets wearing numbers on their backs who, after a “gate” is opened, “race” a distance equivalent to the length of my world’s smallest living room into the waiting arms of their human companions. Blink and you’ve missed it. Or, as in my case, keep your eyes wide open and miss it anyway.
Today the Indy 500 is running, but it’s got nothing on yesterday’s Dachshund Derby. When it comes to winning my attention, high-tech humans are no match for short-limbed canines.
[Art from a vintage German postcard.]
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