Flying dogs raise the woof at the library
Dogs flying through the air at the library? It's not too far-fetched.
The Wareham Free Library was packed full of guests Thursday, July 10 for Mike Piazza's Flying High Dogs. The un-fur-gettable experience saw border collies Oreo, Chaos and Mojo doing a variety of tricks for a round of a-paws.
The event is part of the Get Caught @ The Library summer reading program that offers opportunities for children to come together during summer break.
Children's Service librarian Marcia Hickey said she was happy to bring back Piazza and his pups after hosting them a few years ago. The event had to be moved inside due to inclement weather, which Hickey said offered a unique experience.
"So many people love dogs and he did an awesome job considering it was inside," she said. "He involved the kids a lot with the kids throwing the frisbees, I thought it was very good."
Instead of running through the grass outside, the dogs showed off their skills on a smaller scale. Many children got the chance to throw frisbees and show off their dog facts during the show.
Hickey said events like the dog show help get people out of the house and to the library.
"After the show a lot of times you see the families take a walk around and get some books, it gets them into reading," she said.
For 7-year-old Annelise Presten from Wareham, the event focused on something she loves, having a poodle and border collie at home. Her favorite dog was Oreo.
"I liked all her tricks," she said.
Also enjoying Oreo's skills, 8-year-old Delilah Anna from Virginia was visiting her grandpa and decided to see the paw-some tricks. She said she likes dogs more than cats and had the same stand-out pup as Annelise.
"Oreo was my favorite because I like Oreos," she said.
Piazza has appeared on Animal Planet, ESPN and performed for the NFL, and says performing is more fun for him than anything else.
"It's very self rewarding," he said. "This was so good I had to retire from my full time job about six years ago."
The weather didn't dampen the show which shocked Piazza.
"I was expecting maybe 15 or 20 people. Usually when it rains people don't come out but this one was jam packed and the audience was very enthusiastic," he said.
The Wareham Free Library will be offering events throughout the remainder of the summer until Thursday, Aug. 14. Events and further information can be found at warehamfreelibrary.org.