LAUREL, MD – It was cloudy all over Baltimore Friday morning, but the forecast outside the Preakness Stakes Barn at Pimlico Race Course was nothing but Sonny.
As in Sonny the dog, the 5-year-old right-hand man er, canine, of trainer Kenny McPeek.
Sonny, a fun-loving white Labrador, was at his owner’s side when McPeek showed up to tend to Mystik Dan, the 8-5 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s149th running of the $2 million Preakness Stakes (G1).
It was a photo finish as to who the assembled horsemen, owners and media wanted to see at 7 a.m. Friday: Mystik Dan or Sonny. The smart money was on Sonny.
When McPeek informed officials of the Maryland Jockey Club that he was indeed going to bring Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Mystik Dan to the Preakness, there was this one, small request.
“When they called, I said I wasn’t coming without the dog,” McPeek said with a laugh. “They said, ‘Don’t worry, he is allowed.’”
The MJC made sure that the friendly hound was well taken care of. A customized dog bed and water bowl were made for Sonny. And he was issued an official credential with an identifying photo of his happy mug making him official.
The only difference on his laminated tag was that it stated Sonny was part of “barn security.” He was wearing it on his collar Friday morning.
Sonny walked the grounds – on a leash held by McPeek or by his daughter Jenna – like he owned the place. He accepted dog treats from anyone who had them. The well-trained Sonny gave high-fives, shook hands – using his paw, of course – with his new friends and generally was having a good ol’ time.
Sonny has been through the drill before. Wherever McPeek goes – be it Pimlico, Churchill Downs, Keeneland, Fair Grounds, Oaklawn Park or Saratoga, Sonny goes with him. He’s part of the family.
“He’s a great dog,” McPeek said.
Sonny came into McPeek’s life when he was just a couple months old. It came about in a roundabout way.
While McPeek and his wife, Sherri, were driving back to Kentucky following a winter in Florida, it was decided that a pet was needed to be added to the family. Annie, his younger daughter was all in; Sherri wanted a cat.
While scrolling the internet looking for a feline, Sherri found a picture of little Sonny. She was hooked.
“She said he was so cute,” Kenny McPeek said. “I said, ‘Sweetie, that’s not a cat.’ She wanted to go look at him and I said, ‘If you go look at him, you’re going to buy him.’’’
And that’s how Sonny – that was his name before the McPeeks got him – came to be. He was supposed to be a hunting dog, but Sonny had a problem with that. Apparently, he did not like the sound of gunshots.
“They sold him to us because [Sonny] was not going to hunt,” McPeek said, laughing again.
It did not take long before Sonny realized he could make new friends when he accompanied his master to the barn in the morning.
“All the horses know him,” McPeek said. “They don’t spook from him. At the farm in Ocala, I let him run free because it’s my place. He goes from groom to groom to see if they have anything for him to eat.”
On Friday, Sonny let out a few woofs and barks but that was only because he got a little annoyed when he was not given treats from a visitor who had a bag full of them. He would have eaten them all.
McPeek hardly ever feeds Sonny any dog biscuits because it seems like everyone else he meets fulfills that task.
“If I did, he would be fat as a house,” McPeek said, looking down at his pal. “The thing about him is that he takes the edge off of everything. He doesn’t worry about anything. He’s not going to be uptight. He is just a happy, happy dog who loves people. I have never seen anything but that with him.”
And then it was time to go. Sonny and McPeek disappeared into the shedrow of the Preakness Stakes Barn. They had to go and visit with Mystik Dan. Sonny led the way.