The Mighty Diesel
By Deb Hodgdon
I’d been looking for a long time for just the right companion animal and was beginning to feel a bit frustrated. I made countless trips to the Humane Society, the Animal Shelter and check classified ads but somehow none of the animals I found there seemed to be right for me. Oh yes, I did feel sympathy for all those poor creatures locked up and abandoned and wished I could afford to take them all home and love them as they deserved to be loved, but still not one of them seemed to be just the right one for me.
It was beginning to look like I might never find a furry friend to keep me company and then one day, I dropped into the shelter on Baseline Road in Ocala and there was this huge, sad-eyed Saint Bernard just waiting for me to take him home. I don’t know why, but I just knew this was the one. He actually wagged his bushy tail and smiled at me, yes he did, don’t laugh!
My heart was broken when I realized that another lady was in the process of completing his adoption paperwork. I was too late. After all this searching, I was too late to take home this beautiful dog. Right then and there, I made up my mind to stop looking. Perhaps I just wasn’t meant to have a furry friend.
But I was wrong about that and fate stepped in one Friday evening about two weeks later. I was doing some research on the Internet and something drew me to my favorite search engine. I did a search for Saint Bernard, “Just out of curiosity”, I told myself. Just wanted to see what information I could dig up. And there it was, Saint Bernard Rescue Organization. I read all about it and guess what, they have a rescue right here in Florida!
I completed the online adoption application and clicked it off into cyberspace that night wondering what would happen and how soon. Well, I didn’t have to wait long. The phone rang at about 9:00 that Sunday morning and Robin Hansen introduced herself to me as the Florida contact for the Saint Bernard Rescue. We chatted for a long time about my application, about the available dogs, how the rescue works and finally she told me, “I have the perfect Saint for you.”
This was how I came to find Diesel, the glorious Saint Bernard. I drove to Tampa the next weekend to meet him and his foster mom. From the moment she drove up and I saw him sitting proudly in the back seat of her SUV with that tongue hanging out and that big wonderful grin on his face, I was hooked. Stealing a quote from a well-known movie, I guess you could say, “He had me at hello.”
Diesel came into my home pre-named and I’ve since found out why it was perfect. When he pants he sounds just like a train flying down the tracks, I swear Now I know you may be thinking that Saints are huge, ferocious dogs that drool and bark and destroy your home. Well, that’s not exactly the case. True, some may have their faults that can usually be corrected with training, patience and love, but the nature of the Saint Bernard is sweet, gentle and calm. They are protectors of their human families, especially children.
Now I admit, I was a really concerned about what he might do to my new furniture and my precious possessions, but from day one, he has been a truly amazing dog. He is careful not to knock over things on tables, he does not climb on furniture (except my bed which I have given him permission to do) and he is infinitely patient with me as I learn the ins and outs of being “the human” of a magnificent Saint. He adores my grandchildren, finds my daughter amusing as she squeals when he affectionately leaves a drop or two of slobber on her sleeve and he finds my son a curiosity especially the day he found him on the roof with a tree saw. (My son had the saw, not Diesel.) Makes you wonder what really goes through their minds.
I’ve added a couple snapshots of my Diesel, so you can see what a wonderful guy he is and in the hopes that this might inspire someone to consider giving a safe and loving home to another lonely Saint in desperate need of rescue. Think about it and if you find in your heart that there is room for a cuddly bear, please contact the Saint Bernard Rescue Organization and talk with Robin Hansen. I should tell you that Robin doesn’t post pictures of the Florida Saints online although other states do. She explained to me that she wants people to fall in love with the personality before they see the beautiful face. I probably should add that Robin loves these animals so much that her adoption contract guarantees a refund of the adoption fee if you return the animal to her for any reason. You don’t find that very often. Here’s the web address: http://saintrescue.org/florida.htm
By the way, Diesel says hello and hopes some of his “brothers and sisters” will find a great home with one of you humans. (No, he doesn’t speak to me, but those looks are unmistakable.
