Fish hope dogs can go fetch world record

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This article was published 02/06/2018 (2971 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Every dog has its day — and the Winnipeg Goldeyes are hoping that at least 1,123 local dogs have theirs at Shaw Park on Saturday, June 9.

That’s the day for the Goldeyes’ annual Bark in the Park game, wherein fans and their canine best friends can watch the Fish muzzle the (WARNING: irony ahead!) Chicago Dogs and help the local ball club set a world record at the same time.

This is the fourth year for the Goldeyes’ dog-friendly game, but it’s only the second time Bark in the Park organizers have seriously set their sights on breaking the Guinness World Record for most dogs attending a sporting event.

This coveted canine record is held by the Chicago White Sox, who welcomed 1,122 dogs to their park for a Major League Baseball game in 2016.

Last year, the Fish fell short of the world record by a measly 271 dogs, but that is not going to happen this season, is it Winnipeg?

What we are trying to say is this — sure, we were all a little bummed out when our beloved Jets were bounced from the Stanley Cup playoffs by Vegas, but we will be howling with delight next Saturday when we come together as a pack and shred the world record for most mutts at a sports event.

In a sincere and humanitarian effort to get free publicity for their bid to steal the record from Chicago, Bark in the Park organizers invited a bunch of baseball-loving dogs, including two of my pups, to visit Shaw Park Wednesday morning to run around on the field and pose for photos with four of the team’s stars.

Decked out in Goldeyes T-shirts, my wide-eyed pets, Bogey and Juno, were joined on the ball diamond by Libby, a 10-month-old shepherd-Rottweiler cross up for adoption with Manitoba Mutts Dog Rescue; Dasi, the Bark in the Park poster dog owned by Melissa Schlicting, the team’s food and beverage manager; and Mark-Cuss, a two-year-old mixed breed furball owned by my sister-in-law, Donamae Hilton.

Representing the human side of the equation, were four dog-loving Goldeyes — outfielder Grant Heyman, pitchers Kenny Mathews and Jack Charleston and infielder Matt McCann.

It is difficult, using mere words, to describe how hilarious it was to watch five dogs racing around like lunatics on one of the nicest ball diamonds in the minor leagues while four young professional athletes sprinted after them, but I will try: I honestly thought I was going to wet myself from laughing so hard.

It was impossible to tell who was having more fun, the dogs or the players. Sure, the Goldeyes are professional athletes, but they are also young men living away from home and missing their own dogs with all their hearts.

“I know as a player not being able to see my dog for seven or eight months is pretty tough,” Heyman said as the dogs sprinted out to the warning track. “Any chance I get to see dogs is really nice. When you look up in the stands and see all those dogs, it just makes the day a little better.”

The 24-year-old outfielder from Pittsford, N.Y., is in his first year with the Goldeyes, and said his teammates are pumped about the prospects of beating the aptly named Chicago Dogs next Saturday and capturing the crown for most dogs at a sporting event.

“I think it would be really cool to be part of something like that,” said Heyman, who has a springerdoodle named Kirby back home. “We almost got the record last year; hopefully this is the year we can do it.

“I can’t say I’ve played in front of thousands of dogs before. I think it’s hysterical, especially when they play the doorbell noise and all the dogs go nuts. It’ll be a more relaxed atmosphere. Sometimes games can be pretty stressful, so having something like this at the ballpark will help us relax. At least for us dog lovers.”

“My host family has a dog. I walked in the door and saw the puppy (a husky-shepherd cross) and thought, ‘It’s going to be a good year.’

“After a tough game, there’s nothing better than being greeted by a happy dog.”

One of the highlights of the day was watching one of my dogs, Juno, chase down balls the players lobbed into the outfield, and attempt to retrieve them, which proved impossible due to the fact she recently had most of her teeth pulled.

The only scary moment came when a groundskeeper began cutting the grass with a mower the size of a semi-trailer and this impromptu pack of mutts decided they needed to chase after it and bark at it because the mower was clearly evil.

After all the dogs were safely corralled, pitcher Jack Charleston, 25, who has a red-nosed pit bull named Mary back home in Gainesville, Fla. — “I miss her very much” — said the team will draw extra incentive from having a huge crowd of four-legged fans woofing them to victory next Saturday.

“It’s going to be awesome,” the lanky pitcher said as Bogey, who prefers humans to other canines, looked up at him adoringly. “It will bring some extra fans in, and who doesn’t want to have all those dogs to look at during a game?

“I’ve never been at a Bark in the Park game this big. That many dogs at one game — it’s going to be awesome. It will be great to steal the record from Chicago. It will definitely be loud.”

Looking on with joy as Libby — who was rescued from northern Manitoba after being chased by a pack of stray dogs — raced around the base paths was Angela Duong, adoptions fairs manager for Manitoba Mutts, who said the rescue organization will be holding a mini-adoption event at Bark in the Park.

“We’ll have a booth so people can ask us questions and see what we do,” she said. “We are really excited to be a part of this. We’re a 100 per cent volunteer rescue, so we rely on donations and fundraising events like these. It helps to pay the vet bills.”

Duong said Manitoba Mutts, which will get a portion of the revenues from the game, is calling on its network of volunteers to help Winnipeg break the most-dogs-at-a-game record.

“All our social-media followers are spreading the word about the game and breaking the record,” she said. “We’ve had a really good response so far.”

Back in the clubhouse, with Bogey panting under a boardroom table and Juno perched proudly on a stylish chair, Goldeyes public relations spokeswoman and event organizer Sherri Rheubottom said the team has set aside at least 2,500 seats in 10 sections for dogs and their owners.

I’m not kidding when I say Rheubottom’s eyes lit up as she explained how determined the team is to, finally, chew up the canine record.

“We were only 271 dogs short last year,” she said, warming to the topic. “We need 1,123 dogs to break the record. We can do this, Winnipeg! Let’s show the world how much we love our dogs. It would be great for Winnipeg to do this. And we’re playing the Chicago Dogs. Irony at its best!

“Spread the word. Anyone you know who has a dog — tell them to come on down to the ballpark on Saturday, June 9, so we can get as many dogs as possible. We didn’t win the Cup, but we can set the Guinness World Record.”

Along with the game, there will be a ton of dog-themed activities, including the Pooch Parade at 5:30 p.m., wherein dogs and their owners march around the warning track; the Pooch Smooch Cam, wherein you can swap kisses and get your mugs on the video screen; and the Seventh Inning Fetch, in which staff fling tennis balls to the dogs in the Bark Zone.

The important thing to remember is that dogs and their owners must be in their seats for 10 minutes at the top of the third inning for the event to qualify for the record.

We can do this, Winnipeg. Sure, the Vegas Golden Knights might end up drinking from the Stanley Cup, but you know their dogs won’t be in the stands watching if they do it.

doug.speirs@freepress.mb.ca