It had been over a year and a half since Moose was diagnosed with osteoscarcoma, bone cancer in his right front leg. Moose had done wonderfully with his treatment, amputation and six rounds of chemo. Moose was a very large harlequin Great Dane, and losing a leg did not slow him down one bit.

In Santa Barbara, Ca once a year there is a “Big Dog” Parade. Over a thousand dogs and their owners parade down the main street of town and end at the beach for a dog festival. The parade is sponsored by the Big Dog clothing company that is based in Santa Barbara. Many of the dogs are sporting fancy costumes of all variety.

We were not sure how Moose would do in the parade. He was in great shape, spending hours on end running and playing with our other dogs on our 5 acres. Our main worry was that it is hard for Moose to walk slowly for long periods of time. With a front leg amputation, in order to walk slowly he must hop on his single front leg, and it is clear from watching that it gets tiring after a while. Running however was never a problem for Moose after his amputation. When he ran, the missing leg was not a handicap in any way.

We arrived at the check in area and got our number and got in line and waited for the parade to start. With over 1000 dogs, it took a while for our group to start walking. So we stood around and the people and dogs socialized. Everyone was interested in the huge three legged Dane, and he got his usual attention. Eventually, we started proceeding down the street. There was music, people in dog costumes, dogs in people costumes, and everything in between. Spectators were lining the street three and four deep to see the amazing assortment of people and dogs. Moose did not have a costume, I had intended to do a peg leg pirate, but never got around to it. With the amazing assortment of dogs and costumes, Moose kind of blended in, but every once and a while a spectator would realize that the big Dane was missing a leg. After 4 or 5 blocks of walking ever so slowly, I could see that Moose was getting tired from going so slow. I was worried that at this pace he would have to stop short of the parade end and dog festival.

In a few minutes I realized that the group of a dozen or so Great Pyrenees in front of us had sped up and there was a half a block of empty space between us. So I let Moose run, he took off and was in his full glory. As we caught up to the dogs in front, I had Moose run a circle back around. At this point the crowd went wild. They were so amazed that the three legged Dane could run. I could see that it was an inspiration to the crowd. So Moose and I just kept running in circles as we proceeded down the street. Each new block of people went crazy when they saw Moose. I honestly have to say that was the most applause I have ever received in my life, even if it was really directed at Moose. I think he also realized that the crowd was cheering him on.

When we got to the parade end, I made him lay down on some cool grass at the park next to the ocean. He was tired, but all in all doing pretty darn good. As the crowd started pouring into the beach side park, group after group came up to meet Moose. We spend a couple of hours just hanging out meeting person after person. I bet a couple hundred people took pictures of Moose, he was quite the celebrity. As the crowd started to thin, Moose and I started the trek back to the car. We headed up the main street, but by now with the parade over, the tourists were headed to all the restaurants and shops. We would slow down as we encountered groups of people blocking the sidewalk, then speed up till we got to the next group. Many of the people out and about were shocked to see us running up the sidewalk, not understanding that there had just been a dog parade.

At a stop light a young man on a mountain bike spotted Moose and took a real interest. He asked all about him and his missing leg. He said that he had seen Moose in the Parade and was inspired at how Moose was not going to let a silly thing like a leg keep him from enjoying his life to the fullest. He told me that he will remember Moose forever. I was a bit taken back at his interest with Moose, but he seemed sincere. After a few minutes of talking he bit us farewell and speed up the street on his mountain bike. As he peddled away, I realized why he was so interested in Moose. He was riding his bike with one mechanical leg.

He took off on that bike exactly like Moose would take off after a squirrel. That was one of the most wonderful moments in my life. It was a wonderful end to an amazing day.