Olympians and their Pets: Lowell Bailey - Biathlon

Back to Petside 2010 Winter Olympic Coverage

Pets: Mixed-breed named Florence Q: Tell us about your dog! I don't really know what pedigree Flo is. I'm sure she's not purebred but I would say she definitely has some lab, hound, and a bunch of others thrown in there. Q: Where did you get your dog? I was traveling north from a vacation in Key West with my girlfriend at the time and we stopped to spend the night at a motel just off the interstate in Florence, South Carolina. When we pulled up to our room, there was this mangy stray dog wandering around the parking lot scrounging for food wherever she could find it. I've always really liked dogs, having grown up with them throughout my childhood, and this one was just in really sad shape. But, being that my girlfriend and I were both in school, living in college housing, I didn't think it was the right time to get a dog. So we put some food out in front our door and went to bed. The next morning, there she was - a dirty, pathetic mess of a mutt. But she had this look of, "Don't just leave...not yet!" We gave her a bath (I know that's probably not advisable but she was very docile and emaciated - pretty harmless... And I was up to date on my rabies shots). Then we asked around at the gas station next door. The staff there said she had been hanging around for about three weeks and that if we were willing, we should take her before she got run over or died of starvation. The next stop was the local SPCA, dog in tow, where they informed us that there was no record in the county of anyone reporting a dog of that description missing. They said it was not uncommon for a dog owner to stop at an interstate exit and abandon there dog in hopes that someone would come along and pick him or her up as their new pet. At this point, I still thought that I wasn't ready for dog ownership, so I asked what the procedure was for getting this animal to a good owner. The clerk said, "Well, basically, we're totally full right now. We can take her but if she isn't adopted in the next two weeks or so she will have to be euthanized. The odds aren't in her favor." That is how I came to own my dog, Florence. A lot of people tell me that the name "Flo" doesn't fit her character or mine. But they don't know where she's from! Q: Does your dog train with you? Yes. I take Flo running when I have it on my schedule. I'll bring her to the shooting range sometimes but she just watches from the car. Q: Do you travel with your dog? I don't but I wish I could. Fortunately, my mom is a dog-lover and is happy to take her when I'm away. Check out other Olympians that love their pets:

• Daron Rhalves - Freestyle Skiing
• Debbie McCormick - Women's Curling
• Ellery Hollingsworth - Snowboarding
• Erin Hamlin - Women's Luge
• Kikkan Randall - Cross Country Skiing
• Lindsey Jacobellis - Snowboarding
• Mirai Nagasu - Figure Skating
• Pat Deneen - Freestyle Skiing
• Steve "The Fish" Fisher - Snowboarding
• Elena Hight - Snowboarding
• Jen Rodriguez - Women's Speed Skating
• Jeret "Speedy" Peterson - Aerial Skiing
• Jessie Vetter - Women's Hockey
• Johnny Spillane - Nordic Combined Skiing
• Katie Uhlaender - Skeleton Racing
• Lowell Bailey - Biathlon
• Hannah Kearney - Mogul Skiing