Long-distance running is not easy work for a human. And for a tiny stray dog in China’s Tian Shan mountain range? You would think it would be impossible. But marathoner Dion Leonard discovered that wasn’t the case, at least not for the sprightly pup that ran alongside him in the 2016 Gobi March 4 Deserts race.
“Basically on day two she decided to run with me on one of the stages, which was around 25-30 kilometres over the Tian Shan mountain range,” Leonard told the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland. “She would run ahead of me and wait for me 20 or 30 metres down the road and then I’d have to catch up with her…she’s such a small dog but had a massive heart.”
The pair quickly bonded over the seven days of the race, with Leonard taking hits on his race time to help the dog, named Gobi, over large river crossings.
The story doesn’t end with the race: now, Leonard is trying to get the Gobi back to Edinburgh, Scotland to live with him. But it’s not an easy task. As Leonard wrote on the Crowdfunder page he started to cover the costs of adopting Gobi, “Getting Gobi to the UK is a long process, one that will take up to 4 months and see her medically checked, quarantined and fingers crossed cleared for entry. All this comes at a cost close to a whopping £5000 [$6,663].”
The good news is, Leonard’s Crowdfunder campaign has been a smashing success. With 47 days left, 293 backers have already raised £9110 — more than enough money to cover the costs to get Gobi back at Leonard’s side as he trains.
What’s next for Gobi? Right now, the dog is still in China, being cared for by one of Leonard’s friends, and they’re already working on getting Gobi to Beijing for the required medical tests and quarantine period. Leonard is hopeful that he’ll be able to get Gobi to Scotland by Christmas.
“That would be amazing,” he said. “That would be the best Christmas present ever. I’m hopeful that will happen and I’m really thankful for all the support funding-wise because that’s certainly made things a lot easier.”
(Via BBC)
