The Amazing Adventures of Archibald Esq.

Trivia Time with Archibald (twenty-three): The Most Dogs Walked

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Whenever I’m out and about with big and little feet I’m always amazed and delighted to see so many other hounds out there stretching their legs and getting a bit of exercise… Big ones. Little ones. Friendly ones. Growling ones. Dark ones. Light ones. Fat ones. Thin ones. Which got me wondering…. What is the greatest number of dogs walked by two-leggeds at the same time?

Hint: If you had a dog for every day of the year it would add up to about a decade of dogs…

A: The most number of dogs walked which was recorded and given a Guinness World Record title took place in Austin, Texas (USA) in the spring of 2002.

All in all over 3,000 dogs took part in a charity fund-raising walk. Thousands of dogs of all shapes and sizes participated in the Mighty Texas Dog Walk sponsored by the nonprofit Austin-based organization Texas Hearing and Service Dogs (THSD).

With 3,117 wagging tails present, event organizers reclaimed the Guinness World Record for most dogs walked. Britain had wrested the title away from Texas in 2000 with an event featuring 2,873 dogs. THSD had tried to regain the record in 2001 but pouring rain prevented many — both four-leggeds and two-leggeds — from participating.

Ominous clouds filled the sky for much of the morning, worrying organizers that their efforts would be foiled again. But by the end of the walk, the day was sunny and so were the moods of the organizers, who announced they had broken the British record by 235 dogs.

The original idea for the Mighty Texas Dog Walk came to Sheri Soltes, THSD founder and executive director, as a way to raise money for her organization and set a world record in the process.

“She just formed it and said, ‘We can beat that, we’re Texas,” said Lori Stevens, a THSD trainer from Dallas. And in 1999, the Mighty Texas Dog Walk did just that - drawing more than 2,000 dogs and shattering the Canadian record of about 1,100 dogs.

Aside from the Guinness World Record, the event also raised money and awareness for service dogs. THSD rescues dogs from animal shelters and trains them to help those with disabilities perform everyday tasks such as getting items from the refrigerator and taking socks off at the end of the day.

It costs about $12,000 (US) to train a service dog like Butter, who now accompanies 52 year old Round Rock resident Bill Greenhalgh. Greenhalgh, disabled in the Vietnam War, said he was there on the walk to raise awareness of service dogs and, of course, help break the record.

The head injuries Greenhalgh suffered from a helicopter crash while in Vietnam confined him to a wheelchair, and when his condition worsened, he required brain surgery. He learned about THSD and service dogs while at home recovering. “I was lying home, watching TV, and I saw a show on Animal Planet,” Greenhalgh said.

Immediately interested in the idea, he contacted THSD, went through their interview process, and then came home with Butter around Christmas of last year.

Greenhalgh went 27 years without knowing about service dogs, and now he wants to let as many people as possible know how much has changed in his life for the better. Butter “picks things up for me, opens doors, turns the light on and off, just about everything in the world,” Greenhalgh said. And that’s not all! Greenhalgh also noted that “He’s lowered my blood pressure and heart rate quite a bit.”

Superwoof to Texas and their support of Hearing and Assistance Dogs! And by all means, bark in if there’s a new recorder breaker dog walk that I don’t know about.

Awoof! Archie

Posted 13 Jul 07