Reprinted with permission from TEAM & TRAIL Publishers & Printers, Center Harbor, New Hampshire, 1996.

The following story was first reported in the Laker newspaper , Mound, Minnesota, Saturday, January 27, 1996, by Lorrie Ham, staff writer for The Laker.

Prancer is home. The two-year-old sled dog, who belongs to Dave Hochman of Winnipeg, was in Mound, Minnesota, the weekend of January 13 and 14 for the Westonka Winterfest Sled Dog races on Lake Minnetonka. Prancer is the lead dog for Hochman's second 10-dog team.

During the Saturday races, Hochman's first 10-dog team left the gate, and Prancer got a little excited. While handlers tried to hold her back, she broke loose and took off after her teammates.

Mushers and spectators saw the loose dog, and a wild chase ensued. Eventually several snowmobilers circled the canine and tried unsuccessfully to catch her. Prancer broke through and took off, disappearing under a bridge and off onto land while spectators and mushers looked on helplessly. The local police and radio station were notified of the loose soul, who was all dressed up in a harness and ready to go sledding.

On Saturday afternoon there were a few sightings of Prancer, but no one was able to catch her. On Sunday the canine still hadn't been found, and after two days Hochman was forced to abandon his search for Prancer and headed back to Winnipeg with the rest of his dogs.

Bobbie, Stephanie, Justin, and Jay McCoy of Independence, Minnesota, a small town about five miles from the race site, had also been to the races and had seen Prancer get loose. On Monday afternoon, January 22, Stephanie, Justin, and Jay went out to their barn to feed and tend their animals, and there was Prancer, huddled in the shadows, hungry and tired. How long she had been there and exactly where she had been for almost ten days no one knew. At last, however, Prancer was rescued! She seemed delighted, too, to be in human hands again.

The children's mother, Bobbie, quickly notified neighbors and NSSDC members and mushers Dan and Cathy Moll that they had found the missing dog. Having competed in the Westonka races, the Molls were well aware of Prancer's situation.

Prancer was taken to a local vet and treated for some minor injuries. A gash on her leg needed stitches, and when she was found, her harness had slipped around one of her legs and caused some chafing. She also was weak and had obviously lost some weight. The Molls presumed that she had made some meals on the cats' food in McCoy's barn, for she had diarrhea for a few days after being found. Otherwise, she appeared to be in good health, considering the harrowing experience she had suffered. Although Prancer would most likely miss the rest of this year's races, the vet reported that she would be as good as new for next year.

The Molls took the dog home, where she stayed in a dog kennel in their dining room until she appeared stronger and was well on her way to recovering from the diarrhea. The Molls also seemed to feel that psychologically she was okay as well. In fact, said Cathy, "We fell in love with her. She was so well behaved! It was like a miracle that Prancer made it through this ordeal!"

The Molls also quickly got in touch with Hochman, who by this time had given up almost any hope of ever seeing Prancer again. Needless to say, Hochman was extremely happy to learn that his leader had been found in good shape and would soon be on her way home.

Musher Clyde Dockter of Brainerd, Minnesota, who just happens to own Prancer's mother, offered to get her from the Molls. Hochman then made the trip from Winnipeg to Brainerd and retrieved the wayward canine. Cathy Moll reported that she saw Prancer at the Winnipeg races "wagging her tail and looking perfectly happy." For their part in the happy ending, the McCoy children were sent a monetary reward from Hochman.