AZCentral.com

Team rallies to save loyal fan - a dog

The (Champaign) News-Gazette Aug. 09, 2001 10:35:00

DANVILLE, Ill. - A baseball-loving dog who could always be found at Danville Stadium this summer has gotten a second chance after being hit by a car, thanks to the Danville Dans ballplayers he adopted.

The 10-month-old black Labrador mix is named Bear, but the players nicknamed him Dan because he was always coming over to the ballpark during practices and games. When they learned he had been seriously injured this month and would likely be put to sleep, the team stepped in to try to raise the $1,400 for surgery and treatment to save him.

"The whole team was devastated when we got the news so we wanted to do something to get him going again," said Winston Pearson, a 19-year-old player from Alabama.

Dan's owner lived near the stadium and the dog always seemed to know which days were game days, sliding under a fence to get inside and be with the players and the fans, said Nick Conte, a 19-year-old player from California. He'd also show up for every practice, sitting with the team in the dugout or racing around the field retrieving stray balls.

"He took ownership of the park and the baseball team. He was almost part of the team," said Jeanie Cooke, vice president of Danville Stadium Inc., the not-for-profit group that runs the stadium.

When the games would start, Dan would clear the field and head up into the stands to sit with fans and mooch a little food if anyone was feeling generous.

"Everyone was slipping him a hot dog or petting him on the head," Cooke said. "He just won everyone's hearts."

But on July 14, after a home game, Dan was hit by a car outside the stadium. The car hit him in the left side, shattering one of his hind legs, bruising his lungs and injuring a front leg.

Veterinarians were able to stabilize the wounded dog, but it was going to take surgery on his hind leg for him to recover. Dan's owner had always taken good care of him, but she couldn't afford the surgery and relinquished ownership, Cooke said.

Without the surgery, Dan would have to be put to sleep.

The team learned of Dan's fate a few days later while on the road for a game. The players called the veterinarian to check on his condition and heard he was to be euthanized.

With the Danville Dans agreeing to help foot the bill, his hind leg was repaired with a steel plate and screws. The dog was up and walking again within days. His lungs seem to be healing and doctors should know soon whether Dan will have any permanent nerve damage in his front leg.

Dan may love Danville Stadium, but a ballpark can be a lonely place between October and May when the baseball season has wound down, Cooke said. When Dan is fully healed, he'll head to a new home on a 1,200-acre farm in Argos, Indiana - the home of player Eric Stults.

Stults' family lives on a sprawling farm where Dan will have plenty of room to run and roam.

The team has raised about $500 for Dan's medical bills, but is still $900 short. The team will continue to raise money and donation cans have been placed at the ballpark.

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Editor's Note: Anyone wishing to contribute can send a check to the Danville Dans, P.O. Box 1041, Danville, Ill. 61832, or Stateline Hillcrest Small Animal Hospital, 3361 Lynch Court, Danville, Ill. 61832. Checks should note the money is for Dan.

-- Anonymous, August 10, 2001