Too Big to Run (2 page)

Janey wanted to ask more questions. But before she could, the door to exam room one opened. Out walked the biggest dog Janey had ever seen! The dog had floppy ears, droopy jowls, and a sweet expression.

“What in the world is that?” Janey cried loudly.

Lolli giggled. “Is it a dog, or a bear?”

The dog's owner walked out, too. He was a lean young man dressed in shorts and a sweatshirt. He smiled at the kids.

“This is Maxi,” he said. “She's big, but she's friendly—it's okay to pet her if you like.”

“Maxi is a mastiff,” Adam told the others.

“Oh, right,” Janey said. “I recognize her now from my books. I read that mastiffs are a giant breed—and now I see that it's true!”

Janey loved to read books about animals. She was interested in all kinds of dogs and cats. She'd seen pictures of mastiffs before.
But she'd never seen one in person. Maxi looked even bigger than Janey expected.

The dog drooled happily and wagged her tail as the kids walked toward her. But when she took a step, she limped a little.

“What's wrong?” Lolli asked. “Is she injured?”

The young man sighed. “Yes, that's why we're here. She's my jogging buddy, and we were on a run yesterday when she started limping. Dr. Goldman says poor Maxi blew out both her knees.”

“Ouch.” Janey scratched the mastiff's massive head. “That sounds painful.”

Just then Zach's mother bustled out from the back room. “Here you go, Matthew,” she said, handing the young man a bottle. “I found enough pills to last Maxi through the
weekend. If you stop by on Monday afternoon, I'll have the rest for you by then.”

“Thanks, Dr. G,” Matthew said. “I hope these will make poor Maxi feel better.”

“They'll help.” Dr. Goldman patted the big dog. “But as I mentioned, I'm afraid the only thing that will really help her long-term is surgery.”

Matthew winced. “I know, I know,” he said. “I just don't know if I can afford it—at least not anytime soon.”

“What do you mean?” Janey asked.

“I just graduated from college,” Matthew said with a sigh. “I'm working two jobs to make ends meet as it is. I don't know how I'm going to scrape together enough money for Maxi's surgery!”

“Well, we can try the meds for now and
let her get plenty of rest,” Dr. Goldman said. “That should make her feel a little better.”

“Thanks, doc.” Matthew stuck the pill bottle in the pocket of his shorts. Then he snapped a leash onto Maxi's collar. “Come on, big girl,” he said. “We'd better head for home.”

“Walking only, remember?” The vet said with a smile. “No jogging.”

“Promise,” Matthew said. “See you on Monday, doc!”

The kids gave Maxi a few more pats, and then she and her owner left. Dr. Goldman looked worried as she watched them go.

“Why did you tell him not to jog home?” Janey asked the vet.

“Because Matthew is a serious runner,” Dr. Goldman answered. “Unfortunately, mastiffs don't make very good jogging companions. They're too big and heavy to handle that much extra stress on their joints.”

Janey was surprised. “Maxi is too big to run?” she said. “I thought all dogs loved running around.”

“A gentle lope around the park is one thing,” Dr. Goldman said. “But miles every day on pavement is another matter.”

Just then Russ stuck his head out into the waiting room. “Pepper is next, doctor,” he said.

“Coming,” the vet replied. She glanced at the kids. “Pepper is my last patient of the morning. As soon as we're finished, I can drive you over to the shelter.”

“We'll be here, Mom,” Zach said.

“Thanks,” Lolli added.

The vet smiled and disappeared into exam room two. Zach flopped into one of the waiting room chairs.

“We should have a Pet Rescue Club meeting while we wait,” he suggested. “We haven't met any needy pets since we found Lola the pony a new home.”

“True,” Adam said. “Maybe we should post on the blog asking for our readers to suggest other animals that need help.”

“Good idea,” Lolli agreed. “Janey, what do you think?”

“Huh?” Janey hadn't really been listening. She was still thinking about Maxi and her sore knees.

Lolli poked her in the arm. “We said, should we post on the blog to find more animals to help?”

“Haven't you guys been paying attention?” Janey said. “We already know an animal who needs our help. Two of them, actually.”

“We do?” Lolli's big brown eyes got even bigger with surprise. “Who?”

“I know,” Adam spoke up. “Mrs. Reed's new dog, right?”

“Yes, that's one of the animals I was thinking of,” Janey said. “Maybe if we figure
out which medium-sized dog at the shelter would make the best therapy dog, she'll adopt it pronto.”

Zach nodded. “Okay. Who's the second animal?”

“Maxi,” Janey replied. “Didn't you hear what Matthew said? He can't afford to pay for her surgery. Maybe we can help.”

“How?” Zach scratched his head. “I just spent all of my allowance on some cool new stickers for my skateboard.”

But Lolli was nodding. “I think I know what you're thinking,” she said. “We could have a fundraiser!”

“Raise money for Maxi's surgery?” Adam nodded thoughtfully. “That's a good idea.”

Janey grinned. “I know. So let's start thinking!”

Janey was still thinking about Maxi as the kids all piled into Dr. Goldman's car a little while later. “You said surgery will fix Maxi's knees, right?” she asked as the vet started the engine. “Then she'll be as good as new?”

“Well, she should be much more comfortable, yes,” the vet said. “But if Matthew keeps asking her to run with him, it won't be long until she's right back where she started.”

“You mean she'll probably hurt her knees again?” Adam sounded worried.

Dr. Goldman shrugged. “As I said, mastiffs aren't built for lots of running.”

Janey traded a look with her friends. “We should still try to raise money for the surgery,” she said.

“Definitely,” Lolli agreed. “Matthew will probably stop taking Maxi jogging if he understands it's hurting her.”

Dr. Goldman looked at the kids in the rearview mirror. “Raise money for surgery?” she said. “Is this a new Pet Rescue Club project?”

“Yes,” Janey said. With her friends' help, she told the vet about their idea.

By the time they finished, Dr. Goldman was nodding. “I think that's a super plan,” she said. “I'll be happy to donate my time free of charge. So you'll just need to raise enough to cover the cost of the surgical
supplies and medications.”

“Hooray!” Lolli cheered. “Thanks, Dr. Goldman!”

The vet smiled. “You're welcome. So what kind of fundraiser are you planning?”

“We're not sure yet,” Janey said. Pepper's appointment hadn't taken very long, so the kids hadn't had much time to talk about ideas. “But I'm sure we can come up with something pronto.”

“I hope you have an extra-large operating table, Mom,” Zach said with a laugh.

“Yeah.” Lolli nodded. “I thought Roscoe was pretty big until I saw Maxi!”

Adam grinned. “She's almost as big as Lola the pony!”

Dr. Goldman chuckled. “Believe it or not, Maxi isn't the largest mastiff I've ever seen.
The females are usually a little bit smaller than the males.”

They arrived at the shelter. “Call me when you're ready to leave,” said Dr. Goldman. “I'll be at the clinic taking care of some paperwork, so I can pick you up whenever you like.”

When the kids entered, there were several people in the lobby. Kitty, a worker at the shelter, was handing a piece of paper to an older couple. The husband was holding a crate. A cute dog with a pointy nose was peering out through the mesh door.

“Oh, did Peanut get adopted?” Janey exclaimed, rushing over to peer in at the dog. “That's great! He's an awesome dog.”

When Peanut, a dachshund mix with short legs and silky fur, had first arrived at the shelter a couple of weeks earlier, he'd been pretty shy. So Janey spent time with him to help socialize him to new people and situations. He got comfortable and relaxed pretty quickly and then became very friendly and playful.

“We know.” The wife smiled at all the kids. “He's a sweetheart.”

“Congratulations on the new addition to your family,” Kitty said. “Just call us if you have any questions or problems, okay?”

“Thank you.” The husband leaned down
to look at the dog. “Come on, Peanut. Let's go home.”

The couple hurried out. Kitty was still smiling.

“I think Peanut is a perfect match for those two,” she said. “They both work from home, so he'll get lots of attention.”

“That's great,” Adam said. “Peanut is a great dog, but he needed just the right home.”

“Yeah.” Lolli giggled. “Peanut definitely wouldn't want to live with Matthew, for instance. No way could he keep up with all that jogging on those short little legs!”