Arthur John Elsley Paintings

Here are two more Arthur John Elsley paintings depicting children with a Saint Bernard.  Both young boys are tugging on a Saint; we all know how difficult moving a Saint can be.

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Arthur John Elsley Paintings

More paintings by Arthur John Elsley depicting children with Saint Bernards; the lower picture shows the Saint Bernard on guard beside a baby bassinette.  Those of us who love Saints already know how loyal they are to their families.

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Arthur John Elsley Painting

This painting depicts a little girl being protected by her Saint Bernard from a group of squawking geese. 

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Arthur John Elsley

Arthur John Elsley was born in London, England; on November 20, 1860.  He is very well known for his paintings of children, horses, and dogs.  One of his paintings, "I'se Biggest," is of a little girl measuring her size next to a Saint Bernard.  This painting was re-produced in countless prints during his life and had to be re-engraved because of its popularity.  Mr. Elsley had a very long life, he died on February 19, 1952; at the age of 91.

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Drool Bibs For Big Dogs

Brandykegs has a wide selection of dog drool bibs for your big dog, great price and free shipping!

More Superstitions

There are those who believe if a strange dog follows you; then you will have good luck.  If you encounter a black and white dog; then your business will be successful.  A sleepy dog that scratches itself foretells a change in the weather.  Some people feel if they are followed by a black dog they will be lucky.  A newborn baby licked by a dog will be a fast healer.  Most of these seem silly; but many people are supersitious. 

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Some Superstitions

A howling dog was considered to be a bad omen of death or misfortune in medieval times.  If a dog howled when a baby was born; it was believed that the baby would have an unhappy life.  A dog howling outside someone's house was viewed as a bad omen as well.  Some feel that if a strange dog digs up your garden; then illness or death will affect those inside.  Then there is the idea that if a dog sleeps with it's tail straight out behind them and their paws turned upward that bad news is coming; and the direction the tail is pointing indicates the directions that the bad news will come from.  These are all examples of superstitions with negative outcomes.  Are you supertitious?

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Duplicate Bronze Statue Of Bamse

A duplicate bronze statue of Bamse stands in Honningsvåg; Bamse's birthplace.  The orginal statue of Bamse in Montrose looks north east toward Honningsvåg; the duplicate statue in Honningsvåg looks south west toward Montrose. 

The duplicate bronze statue of Bamse was unveiled by schoolchildren from Honningsvåg and Montrose on June 19, 2009.  Bamse is a wonderful ambassador for heroism and the wonderful Saint Bernard Breed. 

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More On Bamse

Bamse died from heart failure on July 22, 1944; he was seven years old. He received a military funeral with full honors. Hundreds attended his funeral; Norwegian sailors, Allied servicemen, local school children and townspeople as well.

Bamse was posthumously awarded the Norges Hundeorden on September 30, 1984 for his war service; he also received the PDSA Gold Medal in 2006 (known as George Cross for "animals"). Bamse was the only animal during World War II to receive the PDSA Gold Medal honor. A large bronze statue of Bamse was unveiled on October 17, 2006; it stands at Wharf Street in Montrose.

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More About Bamse

Bamse was not only the mascot of the Thorodd and the Royal Norwegian Navy; he became the mascot for all the Free Norwegian Forces. 

The picture above shows crew members from the Thorodd giving Bamse a bath.  I am sure Bamse made sure the crew members bathing him got wet as well.

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Bamse

Bamse is a well-known Saint Bernard mascot for the Free Norwegian Forces during World War II.  Bamse is a Norwegian word which means teddy bear. 

Captain Erling Hafto was Bamse's owner; he was also the master of the Norwegian whale catcher, Thorodd.  Soon after the start of World War II; the Thorodd was drafted by the Royal Norwegian Navy to act as a coastal patrol vessel. Bamse became an official member of the crew on February 9, 1940.  The Thorodd was used as a patrol vessel, POW transport, and as a minesweeper.

Bamse was a wonderful morale booster for the crew; he was also well known by the civilian population in the area.  He was often seen on the front gun tower of the boat during a battle; the crew made him a metal helmet for protection.  Bamse performed several acts of heroism and community service as well. 

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CH Rasko v d Reppisch

The year was 1935; CH Rasko v d Reppisch won the first Best of Breed at SBCA's First National on May 25th.  This wonderful dog finished his championship in a week and half of competition, very impressive.  He had a wonderful show career; winning Best of Breed for Saint Bernards at Westminster; he followed this up with winning first place in the Working Group. 

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CH Judy

The first American bred Champion Saint Bernard bitch was CH Judy.  She became a champion in 1880.  Just like CH Don early records for her are incomplete.  She was noted in the early Stud Books; and she was part of the Challenge Classes at Westminster in April of 1881.  CH Judy and CH Don were brother and sister (from different litters).  CH Don was the older of the two. 

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Plinlimmon

American theater fans back in the mid 1880's where intrigued by a giant dog breed, the Saint Bernard.  The dog was, Plinlimmon; owned by an actor, J. K. Emmet who showed him in theaters throughout America.  Plinlimmon was born in Liverpool, England on June 29, 1883, bred by Mr. Thomas Hall.  He was shown and won dogs shows in 1884; and in 1885 was named Best Saint Bernard. 

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CH Don

CH Don is recognized by the SBCA as the first American bred Saint Bernard Champion in 1879.  Tracking down the information is difficult because record keeping for these sort of events back then is incomplete.  CH Don is listed in early show catalogs from the late 1870's; winning first class on more than one occasion.  Information about his early wins is also found in Stud Books. 

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CH Hercuveen Aurora Borealis

In 1924 AKC officially recognized the Group Placements and Best In Show awards at all-breed shows.  The following year (1925) a Saint Bernard known as CH Hercuveen Aurora Borealis became the first Saint Bernard to receive the Best In Show award.  This occurred at the 12th Annual All-Breed Show hosted by the Maryland Kennel Club in Baltimore, Maryland; on February 21, 1925. 

CH Hercuveen Aurora Borealis was owned by Gertrude Davies Lintz.  She had several other Saint Bernards in her household along with two well known gorillas.  Gertrude was a bit eccentric, she liked to to dress her gorillas in clothes and treat them as children.  Chimpanzees were also part of her household. 

 

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Dogs And Second Sight

Many people believe dogs possess the ability of second sight; this is not a new theory.  Some people think dogs can see ghosts or apparitions; and that some can even sense when death is near.  Today there are dogs that aid an individual who might have a seizure; the scientific community is still hesitant to agree that they are that benefical in detecting when someone may have a seizure.  Dogs can be trained to assist individuals with disabilities; therapy dogs can brighten senior lives.  It is hard to deny the closeness that exists between dogs and their owners; so I think it would be safe to say that they are capable of helping us in mysterious ways as well. 

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Important People And Their Dogs

Dr. Ueno, a professor in Japan; had an Akita named Hachiko.  Professor Ueno suffered a stroke and died at the university where he worked; Hachiko was about 18 months old when this occurred.  Hachiko would wait at the train station in Shibuya each day for his master to return home for the rest of his life.  He has been honored for his loyalty with a bronze statue at Shibuya.

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Important People And Their Dogs

Jofi a Chow Chow, was owned by Sigmund Freud. Jofi was in his office during psychotherapy sessions.  He believed the dog comforted his patients. 

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Important People And Their Dogs

Charlie, a Welsh Terrier owned by President Kennedy; helped him come to an important decision regarding the Cuban Missile Crisis back in 1962.  Charlie was there in the war room with President Kennedy; Charlie helped him arrive at decisions which would de-escalate the conflict.

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

Did you know that your dog's nose print is as unique as your fingerprint?  Well it is, the Canadian Kennel Club has used dog nose prints as a form of identification as far back as 1938.  There is a company in the United States working on this form of identification, supposedly they have a system that creates the nose print without using ink.  I imagine the majority of people still use microchips or tattoos for identification for their pets. 

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Some Interesting Dog Facts

The heaviest and tallest dog on record is an English Mastiff named Zorba.  Zorba tipped the scales at 343 pounds.  He stood 37 inches at his shoulders, and was an amazing 8 feet 3 inches long. 

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

A Yorkshire Terrier named Sylvia is supposedly the smallest dog of record.  She was owned by Arthur Marples of Blackburn, England.  She only stood two and half inches tall, and from the tip of her nose to the tip of her tail only measured three and half inches long.  She weighed in at a mere 4 ounces. 

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

Basenji are often referred to as the "barkless dog."  They may not bark but they still do vocalize with a yodel sound.  Basenji originated in the central Congo area, and are considered one of the older breeds of dogs. 

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

Laiki, a Russian stray dog; was the first to orbit the earth in 1957 aboard a Soviet Sputnik spacecraft. The Soviet Union sent a dog named Pushnika as a gift to Caroline Kennedy.  Of course, Pushnika had to be checked out to make sure she was not carrying any covert spying equipment.  Pushnika had a litter of four puppies; from a breeding with President Kennedy's Welsh Terrier.  President Kennedy referred to the four puppies as "pupniks."  Their names were White Tips, Streaker, Butterfly, and Blackie.  There are descendants of these dogs still living today.

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

During the Middle Ages, dogs like the Mastiffs and Great Danes were outfitted with armor.  They were used to help protect caravans.  Long before this dogs were used in battle; Egyptian warriors are depicted with fierce dogs straining on leads, Assyrian Temples in Iraq show Mastiff with spiked collars, the Legions of Rome used Mastiffs and Molassian Hounds in battle, even Attila The Hun used larged dogs to surround his encampments for protection. 

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Some Interesting Facts About Dogs

Most of us have heard the phrase, "raining cats and dogs."  But do you know where this originated from?  It dates back to the seventeenth century in England.  During periods of heavy rain when flooding would occur, many animals would drown in the flood waters.  They would float down into village streets, giving the appearance that it had rained cats and dogs. 

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Happy 4th of July!

We hope all of you have a happy and safe Fourth of July.  Keep your family safe from fireworks, plan to attend an authorized display in your community.  Don't forget to keep your furry friends safe as well, the bright flashes of light and loud noises which accompany fireworks can be quite frightening to them.

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Some Interesting Dog Facts

Dogs have three eyelids; the upper lid, the lower lid, and the third eyelid it is also called the nictitating membrance.  It is located in the inner corner of the eye, under the lower lid.  This membrane closes horizontally.

Dogs are nearsighted, meaning they can see something close by better than something in the distance.  Our dogs have wide pupils which allows them a wider field of vision and it also enables them to detect movement better than people.  A dog with a long muzzle tends to have a wider field of vision and detects more movement; a shorter muzzle dog seem to see more close details. 

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Some Interesting Dog Facts

Have you heard of the wagometer?  It was developed by Dr. Roger Mugford from the UK.  The device fits on a dog's back with sensors attached to their tail.  Supposedly it can analyze speed, direction, and arc of a dog's tail.  According to Dr. Mugford a happy dog's tail has a wide horizontal wag; a dangerous dog ready to attack is one where the tail is held high and there is only movement at the tip. 

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Some Interesting Dog Facts

Our sweat glands help us to stay cool, what about our dogs?  Their sweat glands are located on their pads, dogs pant to help themselves cool down as well, and their blood vessels dialate around their face and ears (the dialated blood vessels around the face and ears allow blood to flow more freely and it also brings them closer to the surface to aid in cooling.) Be sure to provide plenty of water and shade for your dogs this summer.  Heat exhaustion is deadly not only to us but our furry companions as well. 

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