On Sunday, May 15, 2011, dog owner Rosana Dorsett of Fulton, MD was emailing and calling her friends frantically trying to find her 3-year-old goldendoodle, Dozer. She had gone out earlier that day into the yard calling for her beloved pup, but he did not respond to her calls. Only then did she realize he had jumped the fence taking off for Dozer’s big adventure.

Unbeknownst to Dorsett, Dozer the dog had other plans for that Sunday afternoon besides hanging out in the yard. Close to his home, the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center (UMGCC) was doing a 13.1-mile marathon fundraiser. The monies raised were to go towards the medical center’s on-going research for a cure for one of the most aggressive of all breast cancers: triple-negative breast cancer. Dozer’s home was very close to the 5-mile mark on the marathon and the temptation of 2,000-plus running passerbys was too much for this happy-go-lucky pup to pass up.

Dr. Kevin Cullen, both a runner and a doctor working on the on-going triple-negative cancer research (see the UMGCC triple-negative article on page 70), noticed Dozer throughout the race. He said, “Initially we thought he was running with someone in the race, but then we noticed he would pair up with different individuals during the run.” And like the energizer bunny, kept going and going and going. Only then did the doc and his fellow runners come to the realization that this smiling goldendoodle was running the race on his own.

“He just seemed to have his own mission in his head,” laughs Cullen. “He would even stop for water breaks—just like the rest of the runners.”

Meanwhile, worried-sick pet owner Dorsett learned from her neighbor that there was a race going on that day, and the media was reporting that a dog (suspiciously matching Dozer’s delightfully happy description) had crossed the finish line. “We started putting two and two together,” explains Dorsett. And then it hit her, “Oh my gosh … he ran the race?”

Dorsett notes that Dozer was a dog from a litter that had gone unsold. She says, “I called to ask about purchasing a goldendoodle puppy. We wanted a family-friendly dog who liked the outdoors and swimming.” She continues, “The breeder said all of the dogs had been sold a long time ago—except for one, who was now 11-months-old. He was the last dog left … the one nobody wanted.”

Apparently Dozer thought of himself as a “lapdog” as opposed to an underdog, because on what was supposed to be a lazy summer Sunday, he ran approximately 8 miles and crossed the finish line at the 2:14:24 mark! As he crossed the finish line, the crowd cheered louder as the press covered his marathon completion. Everyone wanted to find out more about this amazing dog, but just as mysteriously as Dozer appeared, he vanished into the finish-line crowds.

Meanwhile, Dorsett was contacting the UMGCC race organizers asking them if they had seen her dog Dozer. By this point he had disappeared.

Fortunately, the next day this divine doggy came home muddy, limping and dehydrated, but still happy. Dorsett was very concerned for his health (after all, he had not been marathon training!) and immediately brought him to the vet. “We took him to the vet and got him rehydrated,” she explains. “Other than that, he just needed a bath and a nap … and when I say ‘nap’, I mean he slept for a day and a half afterwards.”

A few days later, Dozer got a call from the UMGCC. After all, he HAD crossed the finish line, so, technically he had a “finishers” medal due to him. This small award ceremony drew the attention of the local press, then the national press. All of this press attention pulled at the heartstrings of animal lovers and breast cancer research supporters and pretty soon Dozer had raised over $24,000 for triple-negative breast cancer research (see sidebar page 70).

Now Dozer has his very own Facebook page (facebook.com/dozerthedogfanpage) with over 16,000 friends and a YouTube page with over 203,000 views. Go to www.lifepubs.com and click on the cute white dog with the medal!

These days Dozer the dog (or media hound—just kidding) remains extremely busy. He continues to raise money for the cure of triple-negative breast cancer and has his own marathon fundraising page. Dozer’s popularity and his ability to make the topic of breast cancer less scary and more approachable to the public prompted the UMGCC to start a mini 1-mile pet marathon for dogs—which (of course) Dozer will run. A children’s book about Dozer is also in the works, with the message being that you never know how one seemingly small action can help other people.

Whether you believe the hand of a higher power took the lead, or just the pure power of how amazing animals are, Dozer the dog is special by any measure.

To this day, Dozer has raised more money than any other single marathon fundraiser for the UMGCC. To read more about Dozer the dog and/or to make a donation, go to www.umm.edu/dozer.