EXTRA Large Dogs|
Our hearts belong to our LARGER than life Dogs..... Our lives have been touched by Saint Bernards for over twelve years. It all started with a purebred AKC registered stud dog named Sparkling Rivers Elmwood. Lovingly known as Dooly. Dooly was a remarkable example of the versatility of the Saint Bernard. He was a rust colored smooth coat with a dry mouth, so the slobbering was minimal. Dooly never was one to stray off, but he was well known for his daily walk-abouts of our property's boundary's. Dooly was a phenomonal swimmer, and several times would drag Casey or one of her friends in to shore if they got to tired. One of Dooly's favorite activities was what we called Dock-ball. One of us would stand on the end of the dock and hit a ball way out into the lake. Dooly would take a flying leap off the dock and fetch the ball- all day if we had the energy. Dooly's other favorite activity was riding in the truck, or van, or car. He really didn't mind what it was, as long as he got to go with. Thank goodness for hatchbacks and four door pick-ups! Dooly sired a few litters of puppies, and all of them found homes quickly. His very last litter was a blessed surprise. Our female Poof gave birth to 7 healthy puppies on March 17th of 2006. One of these puppies was going to be kept as Dooly was nearing his 12th year. Bandit had the luck of growing up with his father, and sadly, we did lose Dooly later that year in September. He went to sleep in my arms after a truck ride with the family. Bandit made the loss a little easier, and he believes that the sun rises and sets on Casey. Bandit learned early how to carry a pack and pull a sled. He is as smart as Dooly was, and we often have to wipe a tear away when Bandit does what we call a "Dooly-ism". Bandit is a light rust colored smooth coat like his father, but he has a bit of a wetter mouth. Nothing to drastic, but obvious to us. Bandit is now joined by Ubut00. Our very first rough coated Saint! Ubutoo is a dark Mahogany, and comes from dry mouthed parents. Ubutoo's name is special to us, as it is part of a nickname, Ubu, that we had for Dooly, and being that the new pup is so similarly marked like Dooly, he is number two or too for "also". So put together, we got Ubutoo. Saint Bernards are wonderful family dogs, great protectors, and happy to be with their families. People think they eat you out of house and home, but we have never found that to be true. Our dogs are all spoiled as they each have a favorite piece of furniture. |
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Sparkling Rivers Elmwood 1995 to 2006 This photo shows Dooly perfectly, he was always surveying his kingdom. For almost twelve years Dooly watched over us. He was bred and born in So. Dakota, and it was only fitting that he came "home" before he passed away. Dooly will never be forgotten..... |
| Dooly's son Bandit Bandit is a great reminder of his daddy. One thing Bandit loves more than Dooly ever did is- SNOW! Bandit is constantly out playing, rolling, and running happily through snow. To his delight we got enough snow that he could turn my round bales into his personal playground! |
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Bandits Mother - POOF! This is our Great Pyrennes female Poof. We got her up near Sault St. Marie, so of course we went over the border into Canada for a quick "vacation". Poof was an excellent dog, but she was unhappy without a job to do. After she surprised us with a litter of pups, we sent her to live with the family that bought one of her pups. They offered her the most ideal home for a Great Pyrennes, and she is greatly loved. We miss Poof, but we didn't feel it was fair to her to live in a situation were she was obviously unhappy. We have her son, Bandit, and we see a lot of Poof in him. We think Bandit took more after his momma than he did Dooly..... |
| Everlasting happiness in the snow! The only thing that will make Bandit happier than snow is being with Casey. He has been devoted to her since he was born; into her hands..... |
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Bandit at the Cabin in Wisconsin. Bandit is well traveled. Having been in three states since his birth. So. Dakota, Minnesota, and up to the family cabin in Wisconsin. He is happy anywhere that Casey is. |
| ~Bandit and Dooly~ Having Bandit made the loss of Dooly so much easier. Dooly influenced Bandit greatly, and occasionally we'll catch ourselves calling him by his fathers name. It was like Dooly knew his time was near, and he gave us a gift in order to recover from his loss even just a little quicker than regular. |
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Look who's here! It took awhile before Jim or myself could welcome another dog into not only our home, but our hearts. We also wanted Casey and Bandit to have a good solid two years together before another dog came in an influenced their relationship. Tears were in my eyes the first time I saw Ubutoo! He was so similarily marked like Dooly had been. His white markings were in the same place, it was like Dooly came back in a rough coated body. Ubutoo has so many personality quirks I changed his original name from Gator to Ubutoo. I used to call Dooly UBU, and since Gator was like a fuzzier version of Dooly, I used UBU and added TOO for also or two. Put it together and you have UBUTOO! |
| Take my picture! Ubutoo enjoys being the center of my attention despite originally being intended to be for Jim. Ubutoo enjoys comforts, like my chaise lounger. He doesn't even mind if I am already on it, he jumps up and plunks down on me! |
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