Quincy: Wild Dog of the Alaskan North
- Quincy's a tough Alaskan dog who looks like a dirty mop. A nine-inch high dirty mop.
- Paulsen says that Quincy came to him in a convoluted way. Something tells us we're about to hear all about it.
- Paulsen was living in Minnesota when he decided he wanted to run the Iditarod (a grueling sled dog race in Alaska). He started training dogs even though it seemed like a far-fetched idea.
- Meanwhile, in Anchorage, somebody left poor old Quincy on the side of a freeway.
- Luckily, a truck driver rescued the dog from the side of the road.
- Back in Minnesota, Paulsen found local sponsors to help him pay for the race. They have potlucks and raffles. One woman even stopped to give him money in the street.
- Over in Alaska, Quincy goes home with the truck driver, who happens to be a sled driver. He promptly runs away.
- In Minnesota, Paulsen has just gotten a Siberian husky. He starts training her and she's good at pulling the sled.
- Meanwhile, little Quincy is traveling through the Alaskan wilderness. Paulsen can't believe he made it past all the wild animals.
- Quincy arrives at the home of a single mother. She takes him in because she wants a dog for her kids. She'd always wanted a Siberian husky, but Quincy will have to do.
- Just one drawback: Quincy loves getting into the trash.
- Back in Minnesota, Paulsen and a carpenter friend set off to drive to Alaska. It takes eight days of 24/7 driving, with stops in freezing weather, for the dogs to do their thing.
- In Alaska, Paulsen sets up camp. He discovers that his Siberian husky isn't good for long-haul trips. She stops after exactly 30 miles—not good enough for the Iditarod.
- A man visits the camp and says there's a woman—Quincy's new owner, as it happens—who will make a salmon dinner for anyone who will help her with a house project.
- Paulsen's all about that house project. (The camp food isn't so good.) He and his carpenter buddy hitch up the Siberian husky since it's a short trip.
- Over dinner, Paulsen takes a liking to Quincy, who sits in his lap.
- The woman mentions how much she wanted a Siberian husky. Paulsen decides to offer a trade, which she accepts. It's the husky for Quincy.
- Paulsen recalls how Quincy used to always keep him guessing.
- As soon as Quincy meets Paulsen's wife, they become attached at the hip. Quincy's her dog, not Paulsen's.
- Back at home, Quincy never gets into the trash. He never runs away, either. Good dog.
- At first, Paulsen thinks Quincy isn't all that bright.
- He's wrong; Quincy's a super smart dog.
- In the car, Quincy likes to smell the floor vent when they pass something interesting. Clever.
- He also always remembers good spots, like the bank where a teller once gave him a treat.
- Another time, at Dairy Queen, Quincy jumps out of the car and into the drive-through window. He helps himself to a sundae sitting on the counter and causes quite a commotion.
- At the time, Paulsen and his wife were living in the wilderness, basically. They had to deal with predators like bears a lot.
- When they encountered a bear, Paulsen always shot a rifle in their direction—not to shoot them, but to scare them away. Eventually, this stopped working.
- (Paulsen's too big of a softie to actually shoot bears.)
- They were visited often by a "problem bear." One time the problem bear attacked Paulsen's wife.
- Quincy to the rescue. The little dog ran at the bear and attacked. He clung to the bear's chest, fighting.
- Paulsen's wife ran up to the bear and rescued Quincy. She must have really, really loved that dog. She rushed back to the house.
- Quincy was fine—no injuries.
- Paulsen says that Quincy died a year ago. He was ancient and blind, about 20 years old. He loved Dairy Queen until the day he died.