City sponsors swimming day for dogs

Somewhere amid 30 or so other dogs at Mills Pool, Monkey — a three-legged mutt — disappeared.

 “I lost Monkey,” said his owner Allison Davis.

Scampering near one of the kiddie pools placed around the perimeter, Monkey looked up at his owner. It was his first time at Drool in the Pool, and he wanted to explore.

Nearly a year ago, Monkey’s previous owners brought him into the animal clinic where Allison Davis worked. They claimed the 4-month-old dog broke his leg falling off a bed, and they did not want to get it fixed, said Tyler Davis, Monkey’s other owner.

“No one at the clinic wanted to see him put down,” Tyler Davis said, “so they amputated his leg for free.”

Allison Davis, after noticing Monkey’s location, picked him up by a handle on his orange life jacket and took him toward the pool’s shallow end. While this was Monkey’s first time at the event, it was also his first time swimming, and he needed more practice.

The City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department and White River Co-op have joined to sponsor Drool in the Pool for the past seven years. The event began Wednesday and will continue today from 5 to 8 p.m.

Drool at the Pool originally took place at Mills Pool but was moved to Bryan Park Pool for a few years. It was relocated back to Mills this year, said Community Events Manager Becky Barrick Higgins, because of the 0-depth area, which gives dogs an easier way to get out of the pool because there are no stairs.

Though coordinators charge $5 per dog to get in, the admission fees all go toward covering the event’s costs, said Rosie Landis, sales and promotions coordinator for White River Co-op.

“I think it’s just a fun thing for the dogs,” Landis said.

Landis said she has helped plan the event since its inception, and Wednesday she helped guard a white fence, allowing one dog in and one dog out at a time.

“It’s so the dogs don’t escape,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of dogs escape.”

The new system at Mills, though, prevented dogs such as Tegan, a beagle, from leaving. Tegan hung around Landis’ gate, looking to escape.

“She’s been over here a lot,” Landis said of the beagle.

For the event, larger dogs had the opportunity to chase tennis balls provided by the Parks and Recreation Department while smaller and “scaredy” dogs played in a separate section.

Pepper, a miniature pincher mix, pranced through the small dog section, chasing tennis ball after tennis ball. But a small fight broke out when Pepper’s play was interrupted by a black Labrador.

“I don’t think he’s scared because he’s barking at them,” Julie Barbick, his owner, said.

An hour into the first night, a group of dogs and their owners gathered around a corner of the pool. A splashing contest was about to begin.

After their names were called, the dogs owners would toss a tennis ball into the pool, and the dog would jump in after it, attempting to make the biggest splash.

Most dogs chose the running and leaping approach, but Chief, a golden retriever, paused when he got to the water’s edge and jumped for a minimal splash.

His sibling, Bell, was next to go. But Chief wasn’t quite finished. As soon as the ball hit the water, Chief was back in to retrieve it.

Haggis, last to go, also chose an unusual method. When the ball was thrown, he ran to the edge, barked at the ball and then circled the pool, trying to find a better spot to jump. Neither he nor Chief took home the prize.

More competitions for the dogs will take place tonight beginning at 5:30 p.m. with Best Dressed, followed by Pet Tricks, Cutest Dog and a Grand Prize Winner. The grand champ will take home three 35-pound bags of dog food.

Near the deep end of the pool Wednesday, Monkey circled around his owner’s legs.
Davis reached down, lifted him by his life jacket handle and dropped him in the water. While he didn’t take to swimming immediately, he persevered, reaching the edge without any harm.

“He’s not quite sure what to do,” Tyler Davis said. “But he’ll get used to it.”