{"id":24614,"date":"2024-11-28T20:49:26","date_gmt":"2024-11-29T03:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/more-than-just-turkeys-trotted-this-thanksgiving-in-cortez\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T22:57:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T04:57:23","slug":"more-than-just-turkeys-trotted-this-thanksgiving-in-cortez","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/more-than-just-turkeys-trotted-this-thanksgiving-in-cortez\/","title":{"rendered":"More than just turkeys trotted this Thanksgiving in Cortez"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Peggy
Peggy Littlejohn and her pup Beau moments before winning \u201cbest trick\u201d at For Pets\u2019 Sake\u2019s 21st annual Turkey Trot at Parque de Vida in Cortez. (Cameryn Cass\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Just before 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, people and pets \u2013 and even a miniature horse \u2013 gathered at the pavilion in Parque de Vida, patiently waiting to start trotting in the 21st annual Turkey Trot put on by For Pets\u2019 Sake Humane Society.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe race starts in four minutes,\u201d Lynn Dyer, the president of For Pets\u2019 Sake, announced at 9:56 a.m. \u201cCome sign up if you haven\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A
A Basset hound named Jasper moments before walking in his third Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day at Parque de Vida. (Cameryn Cass\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

It was $25 to trot the mile around the park, and all proceeds benefited the humane society.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe use the money to spay and neuter, to trap and fix feral cats \u2013 we\u2019ve fixed over 63,000 in Montezuma and Dolores counties so far,\u201d said Dyer.<\/p>\n

It also helps For Pets\u2019 Sake foster kittens and puppies to ultimately find them \u201cforever homes\u201d and it funds their food program for people who can\u2019t afford to feed their pets.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid I get it all?\u201d Dyer asked Liz Markum, the treasurer of For Pets\u2019 Sake.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think so,\u201d Markum said.<\/p>\n

Markum estimated there were 90 participants this year, up from 70 last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always interesting to see what shows up,\u201d Dyer said.<\/p>\n

Over the years, they\u2019ve seen everything, it seems \u2013 there have been real live turkeys in the Turkey Trot, and goats too. Dyer remembered there was a ferret and a guinea pig one year.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t forget the hermit crab,\u201d Markum said with a laugh.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a riot,\u201d Dyer said.<\/p>\n

\"Ann
Ann Streett-Joslin and her miniature horse Pumpkin, 24, pose at Parque de Vida on Thanksgiving Day. (Cameryn Cass\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

This year, the most unusual trotters were a miniature horse and a cat, and they tied for first place for the \u201cmost unusual animal\u201d award.<\/p>\n

The other prize categories were first to cross the finish line \u2013 though they stopped advertising the event as a race per an insurance company\u2019s request \u2013 the last to cross the finish line, the best trick and best costume.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was so fun,\u201d said the first to cross the finish line. \u201cI\u2019ve been doing it for eight years. I love the energy and supporting a great cause.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI got really tired,\u201d said her 7-year-old son, out of breath but smiling.<\/p>\n

While waiting for all the other trotters to cross the finish line, Ric Plese told The Journal <\/em>the story of how the event got started.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a group of friends getting together for Thanksgiving, unofficially, 28 years ago,\u201d Plese said.<\/p>\n

He said he used to do a Turkey Trot in Denver, so when he moved here he brought that tradition with him. And after a few years, him and his friends turned it over to For Pets\u2019 Sake.<\/p>\n

\"Jack
Jack Schuenemeyer and his dog Gracie after walking the mile loop in Parque de Vida on Thanksgiving Day for the For Pets\u2019 Sake 21st annual Turkey Trot. (Cameryn Cass\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Jack Schuenemeyer and his pup Gracie crossed the finish line not long after the first pair, dressed as a pilgrim.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe normally walk two to four miles. This was an easy day today,\u201d Schuenemeyer joked.<\/p>\n

He said he\u2019s been doing the Turkey Trot almost every year since For Pets\u2019 Sake started doing it, and, of those years, he\u2019s dressed as a pilgrim for most of them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of fun to do,\u201d said Schuenemeyer. \u201cIt\u2019s fun just to talk to people and to support For Pets\u2019 Sake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though some trotters were seasoned, others started the tradition more recently.<\/p>\n

Pumpkin, the miniature horse, \u201ctrotted a good bit\u201d of her second Turkey Trot, said Ann Streett-Joslin, her owner.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s got a short wheel base, but high RPM\u2019s,\u201d Streett-Joslin said.<\/p>\n

Two dogs who looked like siblings \u2013 but were indeed unrelated \u2013 also looked like movie stars, and this year was their first organized strut through the park.<\/p>\n

\"The
The two dogs at the Turkey Trot this Thanksgiving who are not siblings, but very well may be movie stars. (Cameryn Cass\/The Journal)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cThey did well,\u201d said Kathy Hennek, the owner of Poppy and Brie.<\/p>\n

Once everyone finished the loop, they gathered at the pavilion to watch the pets do tricks, and decide on the best costume.<\/p>\n

A miniature Australian shepherd named Beau stole the show and ultimately took home first place in the best trick category after spinning in circles on her hind legs.<\/p>\n

Beau was in costume. dressed as a fairy with purple and blue sparkly wings and a matching tutu that tripped her only once.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a dancer in our crowd,\u201d a For Pets\u2019 Sake volunteer said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019ll do anything for food,\u201d said Peggy Littlejohn, who owns Beau, with her husband, Tony. \u201cShe\u2019s a foodaholic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peggy said that Beau is known for these kinds of tricks, and that she\u2019s really smart, though she\u2019s not always obedient. She is, however, an agreeable travel companion, and the couple said she joins them in their van travels.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt 29 pounds, she\u2019s travel size,\u201d Tony said.<\/p>\n

The \u201cbest costume\u201d was awarded to a small dog named Luna who was dressed as a pig.<\/p>\n

And the last two to cross the finish line were Stephen and Emilee Tarnowski.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe went around twice,\u201d Stephen said to the crowd after the For Pets\u2019 Sake volunteers tried awarding the \u201clast to cross the finish line\u201d prize to them.<\/p>\n

They were, however, technically the last to cross, regardless of how many laps they did, so they won.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you everyone, it\u2019s been a wonderful time,\u201d a For Pets\u2019 Sake volunteer said. \u201cSee you again next year, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

de Vida, an estimated 90 people participated in the 21st annual Turkey Trot <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":24615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28,29],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-24614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines","tag-newsletter"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24614"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24614\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78607,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24614\/revisions\/78607"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24614"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=24614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}