Meet Justin Spring and Oscar

Event: Men's Gymnastics Hometown: Burke, Virginia First Olympic Games Pet's Name: Oscar Breed: Terrier and Black Lab mix

Where did you get your dog? My girlfriend and I got Oscar from the Humane Society together.

What is your dog's favorite thing to do? My dog's favorite thing to do is to wedge a tennis ball under our recliner and then spend hours trying to dig and paw it out. If he can't get it out, he comes to me and I have to tip the chair over so he can get the ball... and the cycle continues.

What are your dog training tips? My girlfriend and I actually went through a class that gave us a bunch of good ideas. A few of the ones that really helped were: take training in very small steps, use healthy treats that the dog is crazy about and use the same leash to train the dog every time. These made training really easy for him and for us.

Does Oscar help you train? He helps me relax after training. But he can't really help much during training.

What's your favorite thing about your pet? Oscar is smart so when he knows I'm mad, or if he thinks I'm mad, and I go near him, he will roll over on his back and play dead. I think he just likes to have his belly rubbed all the time though.

What is something you and Oscar share? An interesting story is that just a few weeks before I hurt my ACL at the Visa Championships in San Jose, we found out Oscar needed knee surgery. We had it done just before I left for San Jose. So coincidently, a few weeks after Visa Championships I had my knee surgery and we now have matching scars. We went through a knee surgery together!

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