reprinted from

August 02, 2006

Provided by Bernie Baillargeon Bullwinkle D. Moose is home, thanks to a dog Samaritan.

Pol saves a dog-tired pooch on freeway

A candidate for a watchdog position helped a scared pooch running loose on a freeway Monday night.

C.J.       

The Dish

A candidate for a watchdog position helped a scared pooch running loose on a freeway Monday night.

Former Rep. Rebecca Otto, the DFL candidate for state auditor, said she and campaign worker Helen Truax were driving back from St. Cloud when they encountered lots of construction near Hwys. 35E and 694. "All of a sudden, I see cars braking and swerving; the lanes are super narrow. I see this big dog darting in and out of cars. The dog ended up racing over to the median, was between me and the median, so I was driving along and talking to it, 'Come on, come on,' " Otto said. "It wasn't listening, so Helen helped me and we got him to slow down. We pulled in front of the dog. She jumped out and grabbed him."

Otto said the dog was overheated with seemingly worn paws.

"Got him home. Hosed him down, gave him lots of water, put the air conditioner on for him, let him sleep in the workshop and called the owner who came and got him" at 7 a.m. Tuesday, said Otto.

While Otto was telling me the story, her husband, Shawn Otto, the screenwriter of "House of Sand and Fog," and the upcoming "Dreams of a Dying Heart," wanted to clarify one thing. "I was the hoser," he said, laughing.

The dog's owner, Bernie Baillargeon of Vadnais Heights, said the vet believes that Bullwinkle D. Moose, a big, fluffy Akita named for Bullwinkle J. Moose, "was likely hit by a car."

"That was very nice of Rebecca to stop and basically rescue him," Baillargeon said. "She probably saved him last night by cooling him down."

He thinks his dog escaped from the yard after being frightened by the weather.

I telephoned State Auditor Patricia Anderson to find out whether she, let's say, has walked a little old lady across a busy intersection lately. "Not that I'm aware of," said Anderson's spokesman, Tim Miller, with a long chuckle.