THE ST. BERNARD DOGS.

Mataura Ensign, 21 May 1910, Page 2

THE ST. BERNARD DOGS.

fPeople never tire of reading about the famous St. Bernard dogs and their work in the snow, and there is a very readable article by Harold J. Shepstone in the 'Boys' Own Paper/ giving some remarkable particulars gleaned from M. Bourgeois and Father Darbellay, who live in the thousand-year-old monastery. "You may be interested to learn," one of them tells me. "that the older dogs train the younger ones. Their training is very simple. During tho summer months, when we are not so busy, some of the assistants at the monastery take the young dogs out in the valleys and hollows, where there is always snow. One man will lie down in the snow and bury himself in it, and then a dog will be sent to look for him. The animal is taught to bark tvhen he has found him. and also to rouse the man up if he is asleep. When the man wakes up and stands on his feet the dog leads him to the hospice, running along in front to show him tho way. We never send out the females to look for travellers, only the males. Before the advent of the telephone the dogs carried a flagon of wine tied to their collars and food strapped to a saddle on their backs. Now they only carry the wine, because it has been found that the weight of the food only hinders their progress through' the snow. The beverage carried is the famous red wine of Piedmont. Frequently the dogs will remain out in the snow for eight.or ten hours at a time, taking little food and no rest whatever. Before now 1 have known them to lx* out in the bitter weather for 20 h*,ur« at a stretch, with little to eat, but apparently suffering no ill-effects from the exposure." The community at this interesting institution numbers 17 monks and some 15 guards, assistants, and laborers. They are all chosen men possessed of great physical strength. They remain at the hospice 15 years, unless their health breaks down previously."