Saint Bernard

Album: Carousel One (2015)
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Songfacts®:

  • Ron Sexsmith shows his love for man's best friend on this track. "I always said, 'If I had a dog, it would be a St. Bernard,'" he told Jam! Music. "I like the size of them, their face… it's my fantasy dog."
  • The Saint Bernard is a breed of working dog known for its courageous and determined search-and-rescue work in the Swiss Alps. The hardy breed was originated by the monks of the Hospice du Grand St. Bernard in the St. Gotthard's Pass to move easily through snow and rescue trapped people. One Saint Bernard dog called Barry, reportedly saved more than 40 people before his death in the early 1800s.

    Saint Bernards have never carried small casks of brandy around their necks on rescues, as popularly believed. The myth of this quaint symbol was perpetuated by artist Edwin Landseer in his famous 1956 portrait of the breed reviving a traveler.

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