Watching Maty whiz past in hot pursuit of a flying disc – her shaggy brown fur flying and her mouth gaping in anticipation of the moment she gets to chomp down on that plastic disc – she seems like any other athletically inclined dog.

Maty is so fast and so graceful on her feet that it usually takes people a few moments to notice that only three feet are hitting the ground as she runs. Only when she leaps into the air to clamp her teeth into the disc does Maty’s missing leg really become apparent.

Maty launches herself off the ground using only one leg, getting all of her power from her right leg. Maty’s left leg was removed when she was just a puppy.

After catching the disc, the 5-year-old pooch trots back to her owner, Troy Kerstetter, of Bend. She is always slower on the return trip, and she uses her one back leg like a pogo stick to propel her body forward.

”She blows people away,” said Kerstetter. ”They are surprised a three-legged dog can do what a four-legged dog can do.”

Being a three-legged dog that can leap into the air and catch a flying disc makes Maty special. But what truly sets her apart is that, with just three legs, Maty is one of the best flying disc catching dogs in the world. She and Kerstetter earned third place at the Hyperflite Skyhoundz Northwest Regional Championship earlier this year, earning the team a spot in the world championships Sept. 24.

Maty is the first three-legged dog to ever reach this level of competition. She beat out dozens of dogs that had all of their limbs intact.

Kerstetter and Maty compete in the sport division, which tests distance and accuracy. Each team has one minute to complete as many catches as possible. The playing field is split into four zones and with catches taking place in the most distant zone (40-50 yards away) earning the most points. Teams earn an extra half-point if a dog can catch the disc while jumping with all feet off the ground.

Lynne Ouchida, Maty’s owner and Kerstetter’s partner, says that when many people hear about Maty’s competition they ”think she’s going to a Special Olympics for dogs.” Ouchida says people are impressed to learn that Maty ”goes paw to paw with four-legged dogs.”

While bringing home a trophy from the world competition would be nice, that’s not a major motivating factor for Ouchida and Kerstetter, both of whom work at the Central Oregon Humane Society. They just want to give Maty a chance to showcase her abilities and to share her inspiring story.

The beginning

Maty’s disc-nabbing abilities, while remarkable, aren’t the only noteworthy part of her life story. Headlines from Maty’s life would probably read something like: abandoned puppy nearly dies, loses leg, gains family and wins over hearts of hundreds of children.

Maty’s story begins almost six years ago, when a housekeeper at a motel in the south end of Bend found an abandoned dog nursing a litter of puppies, one of which was Maty, in one of the rooms. The housekeeper brought the dog and the 3-week-old puppies, thought to be a mix of Australian shepherd and golden retriever, to the Central Oregon Humane Society.

When the puppies were old enough, Maty’s litter went into a main pen with other puppies to be adopted. One of the stray puppies, however, developed the deadly parvovirus.

Staff members quarantined Maty and the other dogs for two weeks, watching for signs of the virus. Near the end of those two weeks, Maty started acting lethargic and limped on her back leg. Ouchida took Maty, then around 7 weeks old, to a veterinarian, who performed an X-ray of the leg. The vet said the problem wasn’t related to the virus, but that Maty’s knee had been broken and would require orthopedic surgery that would cost more than $1,200.

Maty had already won over staff members’ hearts, and even though the shelter didn’t have the money to pay for her operation, Ouchida says, they weren’t willing to give up on the little dog with the giant brown doe eyes. Because the little dog couldn’t walk, Ouchida placed Maty on top of a pillow and asked a staff member to take her to an adoption event at a local pet store.

An administrator at Central Oregon Health Care, a local nursing home, saw Maty at the store and thought she would make a great therapy dog. She offered $500 toward the surgery, which was enough of a contribution to proceed with the surgery.

For the next three days, Ouchida carried Maty around on a pillow while waiting for the surgery appointment. But while they waited, Maty got worse and worse. The skin near the injured leg became dead and necrotic, according to Ouchida.

She took Maty to a new vet who examined the X-ray. Maty’s knee wasn’t broken; she had a staph infection.

”For $10 of antibiotics and the correct diagnosis, she’d have her leg,” said Kerstetter.

Instead, the infection had so damaged Maty’s leg that it had to be removed.

Once the little puppy healed, she moved into her new home at the nursing home. The residents adored Maty, and every time Ouchida came to visit, Maty’s head was covered in lipstick from kisses the older ladies had planted on the little puppy’s head.

But staff members didn’t have very much time to tend to the puppy. So, after several months, they asked Ouchida to take Maty back to the humane society. Ouchida welcomed Maty back, and the three-legged dog became something of a mascot for the local animal shelter.

”She’s a good example of a dog that in a lot of shelters would not be here today,” said Ouchida.

Disc dog

Maty learned to play fetch while she lived at Central Oregon Health Care. So Kerstetter decided to see how she’d do with a flying disc, which he says is an easy and effective way to exercise a dog. Maty enjoyed the outings and seemed to thrive on any positive attention he gave her.

Within a few months, she was flying into the air to snag discs. Kerstetter says she uses her tail almost like a propeller to get extra lift. He thought it would be fun to enter a small local disc competition and allow Maty a chance to show off her skills.

”We didn’t really think anything of it,” said Kerstetter.

People watching Maty, however, were ”blown away” according to Kerstetter. The team earned fourth place and a new sense of confidence.

In 2004, they decided to travel to the bigger regional Hyperflite Skyhoundz competition in Portland. When Maty placed fourth, one place away from qualifying for the world competition, Kerstetter thought, ”she can actually win.”

Maty’s renown grew when Kerstetter and Ouchida entered Maty in the Nuts for Mutts Dog Show in Los Angeles. Animal Planet, which aired the dog show, ran a special segment featuring Maty, who ended up earning second place for Best in Show. She also earned first place in the costume contest for her pirate outfit, complete with a peg leg. This year Ouchida, Maty and Kerstetter traveled to the regional Hyperflite Skyhoundz competition in Spokane for Maty’s second attempt at qualifying for the world contest. The team placed third, earning them a spot. Maty and Kerstetter will face off against about 30 other teams from around the world in the competition’s sport division Sept. 24 in Atlanta.

Jeff Perry, co-founder of Hyperflite, says many disabled dogs have competed in the Hyperflite Skyhoundz competitions during the contest’s 32-year history. But this is the first time one qualified for the world competition.

”That’s what makes this story so wonderful,” said Perry.

He says Maty has attracted some attention.

”Everyone likes to root for the underdog. Maty fits that bill nicely,” said Perry.

Kerstetter says having just three legs does impact Maty’s performance. She doesn’t have the endurance that some of the four-legged dogs do. Kerstetter says that he and Maty can usually get about four throws in during the minute-long round, whereas many teams can rack up five or even six throws.

While Maty charges towards the disc with all her might, she doesn’t have the same urgency coming back. Ouchida says the cheering crowd can also slow her down. ”She loves applause. She saunters! It’s really embarrassing,” said Ouchida.

Kerstetter says their team also faces another challenge: his throwing.

”I’m the weak link in our team,” said Kerstetter.

At the Hyperflite Skyhoundz World Canine Disc Championship, they will get two 60-second opportunities to accumulate points. Kerstetter says he just hopes they don’t embarrass themselves.

And he wants ”one time for the crowd to go ‘Wow.’ Then I’ll know we’ve gotten our message out.”

Inspiring others

Even though she’s gained plenty of positive notoriety, Maty doesn’t live the pampered life of a celebrity dog. The dog goes to work every day with Ouchida and Kerstetter at the humane society. Maty often greets visitors entering the building in southeast Bend. Maty’s personality also makes her an ideal ambassador.

”She’s laid back, friendly and not demanding of attention,” said Ouchida.

And because she has just one back leg, she never jumps up on people. Maty also enjoys physical affection and doesn’t mind children touching the place where her leg used to be.

”She loves having her nub rubbed,” said Ouchida.

For the last five years, Maty has worked in the Paws with a Purpose Pet Therapy program, visiting local nursing homes, health care facilities and the hospital. Ouchida, the community outreach coordinator, also takes Maty with her on visits to local schools. Ouchida says most kids are ”enthralled” by Maty, especially those kids with obstacles of their own.

”She is so inspirational to disabled kids,” said Ouchida.

Maty has met thousands of children through these visits and helps Ouchida teach children about responsible pet ownership, how to safely greet a dog and the link between animal and human abuse.

Maty’s experience has also changed the shelter’s outlook on amputated animals. Since Maty, the shelter has facilitated five or six other amputations. Maty demonstrates that animals that lose a limb can do well and that people will adopt them, according to Kerstetter.

Children will get a chance to wish Maty good luck in person at the Best in Show Dog Walk today at the Les Schwab Amphitheater.

The trip to the world championships, however, won’t be easy. Ouchida and Kerstetter worry about how Maty will travel. They’ve heard horror stories about dogs in the cargo section of airplanes, but since the competition is in Atlanta, they see little choice.

Ouchida says she feels committed to all of the children that met Maty to make sure she’s given the chance to reach her full potential.

”People are really proud to know her,” said Ouchida.

Kerstetter also thinks that her story can inspire other families to think about adopting pets from the local shelter. ”She’s such a great example of what you can get at an animal shelter,” said Kerstetter. ”(Traveling is) a necessary evil to get her story more out there.”

They aren’t sure whether Maty will hang up her discs after this competition (at least competitively), but for now they are just excited to see what she can do on the world stage.

”This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Ouchida.

If You Go

What: Sign a good-luck card for Maty and meet her in person at the Best in Show Dog Walk

When: 9 a.m. to noon today

Where: Les Schwab Amphitheater, 344 S.W. Shevlin Hixon Drive, Bend

Cost: Free to watch, $10 to participate

Contact: 312-0131