SOUTH JORDAN — For Harry Schlitz, doing presentations with his sled dogs started 15 years ago as a hobby after he lost his job.
Taking a ride on a dog sled in the Sierra Nevadas inspired Harry and his wife, Lela, to purchase a team of five sled dogs. One of Lela's co-workers invited Harry to do a presentation with the dogs in her fourth-grade classroom. It went so well that word spread and Harry started doing 20 presentations each year.
Two and a half years ago Harry and Lela moved to Park City, Mont., but they continued doing appearances in schools and libraries for Mountain Musher, a dog-sled ride company. Their team of dogs now numbers only three — Sorrel, Pixie and Su — but Harry loves encouraging children to read with the presentation.
"The more we can inspire a child to read . . . that's what it's all about, really. We're honored to do it," he said.
This summer the Schlitzes are doing a tour of several western states. Last week their tour brought them to Utah and several Salt Lake County Library sites — Bingham Creek, Hunter and South Jordan.
Children at the South Jordan Library were delighted with the Mountain Musher presentation. Both Pixie and Sorrel are retired sled dogs from Denali National Park in Alaska. Su is a wannabe who didn't work in Denali but thinks that she did, Harry said.
At the presentation Harry told children how he and Lela adopted Sorrel and Pixie a year ago when the dogs retired. Sorrel served as a sled dog for 9 years, and Pixie, 8, patrolled the 2.1 million acres that make up Denali.
Schlitz related the story of Balto when, in 1925, over 100 sled dogs delivered medicine to a village with an outbreak of disease during a raging blizzard. While other modes of transportation, which couldn't be used because of the storm, would have taken two weeks, the dogs did it in 5 1/2 days.
After answering questions, Schlitz brought in the dogs, one at a time, so the children could see their personalities. Pixie, a white-coated Alaskan husky, is the boss. She served as the lead dog on her sled and is very dignified. Sorrel, a black, gray and white husky, is the quiet one and worked closest to the sled as the wheel dog. Su, an Alaskan malamute, is Miss Personality and likes all the attention she can get, Schlitz said.
Children and their parents were given a chance to pet each dog. Stephanie McKinney of West Jordan said she brought her children, Emma, 1, and Joshua, 3, to the presentation because she knew they would love it, especially since their family just got a dog.
"I think this is the best way to see (these dogs) up close," she said.
Elle Anderson, 5, who came to the presentation with her nanny, Lacey Aston, and sister, Gianna, 2, liked seeing Su "because she has pretty hair."
Krista Sevy brought Owen, 3, Watson, 2, and Quentin, 6 months, to see the dogs because they liked "Eight Below" so well. Owen liked it when the dogs came in, especially Su, and seeing the sled. The presentation helped introduce Owen and his brothers to something out of the norm, Sevy said.
"It exposes them to new things, and they get to have a neat experience to meet the owners up close," she said.
E-mail: twalquist@desnews.com