“What is it?” Janey demanded. “What’s your idea, Lolli?”
“Yeah, spill it,” Zach added.
“Wait.” Lolli led them toward Adam. “I want the whole Pet Rescue Club to hear this.”
Soon Patch and Peaches were sniffing noses with the friendly collie.
“Hey, guys,” Adam greeted his friends. “I just need to take this girl home and then I’ll be ready for our meeting.”
“Forget it,” Janey said. “We’re having our meeting right here and now. Lolli just had an idea.”
She crossed her fingers, hoping her friend’s idea was a good one. The sooner the Pet Rescue Club settled on a plan, the sooner they could help Maxi!
“Actually, you sort of gave me the idea,” Lolli told Adam. Then she smiled at Kitty. “And you did, too.”
“What do you mean?” Kitty asked.
“I was thinking about what you said about how everyone likes seeing dogs in the park,” Lolli explained. “And then I saw Adam and thought about how people pay him to walk their dogs. That reminded me of the walk-a-thon I did with my parents once.”
“A walk-a-thon?” Adam looked interested. “I get it. You want to do a dog walk-a-thon.”
“What’s a walk-a-thon?” Janey asked. “And how does walking dogs raise any money?”
Lolli patted the collie. “When we did it, we were raising money for an environmental group. My parents and I asked people to sponsor us—that means they promised to pay a certain amount for every mile we walked.”
“I get it.” Zach nodded. “We could walk dogs right here in the park, and ask people to sponsor us for every mile we go.”
“And you could invite everyone in town to walk with their dogs to help raise more money,” Kitty suggested. “People love an excuse to get out and do something with their pets.”
“So you really think this will work?” Zach asked Kitty.
She smiled and nodded. “It’s a fantastic idea,” she said. “In fact, if your walk-a-thon is a success, maybe the shelter will do the same thing next year. We’re always looking for fun ways to raise money—and raise awareness of pets in need at the same time.”
“Great.” Now Janey was excited. “So how do we get started?”
It turned out there was a lot to do to get ready for the walk-a-thon. On the walk back to the shelter, Kitty gave them some advice. As soon as Adam arrived after dropping off the collie, the Pet Rescue Club got to work. Janey took notes on her tablet computer while the whole group figured out what to do first.
Soon they had a plan to get started. Lolli was going to ask her parents to get permission from the town to hold the dog walk-a-thon in the park. Janey decided to start by designing a poster to hang up at local businesses. And Adam offered to send an e-mail to all the dog owners he knew asking them to take part.
“What should I do?” Zach asked.
Janey thought for a second. “We need to tell Matthew that we have a plan,” she said. “Your mom knows how to reach him, right? Why don’t you track him down and talk to him.”
“Sure, I can do that.” Zach borrowed Kitty’s phone and called his mother. She was busy with a patient, but soon Russ arrived to pick him up.
“Where to, Zachie?” Russ asked.
“I need to find Matthew and Maxi,” Zach said. “Do you know their phone number? Or where they live?”
“The young man with the mastiff?” the vet tech said. “Actually, I just passed them on my way here.”
“You did?” Zach was surprised.
Russ nodded. “Sit tight—let’s see if they’re still there.”
Soon he pulled to the curb beside the local high school’s playing fields. Zach spotted Matthew and Maxi right away. Matthew was dressed in his running shorts and jogging in place on the school’s track. Maxi was standing near him, wagging her tail.
“This will only take a second,” Zach told Russ. “Can you wait for me?”
“Sure, take your time.”
Zach hurried toward Matthew. Halfway there, he could hear him talking to Maxi.
“No, no, girl,” the young man said. “Stay! You don’t have to run with me.”
“Hey, Matthew!” Zach called. “Hi!”
Both Matthew and Maxi turned. Maxi wagged her tail and hobbled toward Zach.
“It’s okay, Maxi,” Zach said. “I’ll come to you.”
He ran faster and soon reached the big dog. As he was patting her hello, Matthew came over, looking worried.
“I thought this would be a good way to spend time with Maxi,” he said with a sigh. “If I run on the track, she can hang out in the middle and watch. But she doesn’t get it. She keeps trying to run with me, like always.”
“She shouldn’t do that,” Zach said.
“I know, I know.” Matthew shrugged. “I just don’t know what else to do.”
Once again, Zach was worried. Even if they got her the surgery she needed, would Maxi go back to running and hurt her knees again?
Zach pushed that thought aside. “Listen, I have great news,” he said. “We came up with the perfect fundraiser to pay for Maxi’s surgery!” He quickly told Matthew about the walk-a-thon.
“That is perfect!” the young man exclaimed. “I did a jog-a-thon once, and it was a blast. Doing it with dogs would be even more fun!”
“Yeah.” Zach glanced at the big dog. “But do you think Maxi should walk that far?”
“Probably not,” Matthew said with a sigh. “But maybe I can borrow a dog from a friend. I definitely want to help.”
“Great.” That made Zach feel better. “Tell everyone you can think of, okay? We want lots of people to join in and help us raise money.”
“Will do,” Matthew promised. He bent down and ruffled Maxi’s ears. “Did you hear that, big girl? You’re going to get your surgery!”
