Sea Dog Bamse goes to war

A great photo in today's Mail on Sunday of a hound wearing a Norwegian sailor's hat, and an article about him. I couldn't find a link on the Daily Mail website.

Here's the brief review by Simon Shaw of a book about the dawg:

"WWII produced many naval heroes, but none as unlikely as Bamse, this 14-stone St Bernard. Once Captain Erling Hafto's family pet, he joined the crew of the Norwegian's whaler, because he was too expensive to feed at home. When the Nazis invaded Norway, and the Thorodd, now converted into a minesweeper, sailed to Britain to fight alongside us, he went with her.

The story of the giant dog, whho could easily put his front paws on a man's shoulders and became a talisman for Norwegian servicemen, is told in Sea Dog Bamse, by Angus Whitson and Andrew Orr (Birlinn £9.99). His name means 'teddy bear' in Norwegian, but he was no pushover: whenever his ship came under attack, he would stand on deck next to the anti-aircraft gun and bare his teeth at the enemy. He even had his own tin helmet.

One night in Dundee docks where the Thorodd was based, one of Bamse's shipmates was accosted at knife-point, but the assailant hadn't spotted the huge dog lurking in the shadows. It was a costly error. Bamse reared on his hind legs and swatted him into the water.
Stories of Bamse making his own way to the pub or catching the bus into town might sound as shaggy as their subject, but they are corroborated by many witnesses.

When Bamse died, hundreds of Norwegians and Scots turned out for the funeral, and there's a statue of him on the waterfront at Montrose: a stirring memorial to a pet who inspired two war-torn nations."

Gyp, a dog my aunt had, used to catch a bus to go to other relatives in a nearby village. Knew what time it turned up and when to get off. He was as mad as hatter, too. The minute you opened the door to let him out he'd rush out barking his head off.

This is amusing too:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2009/01/04/see-the-dog-whose-best-friend-is-an-owl-pictures-115875-21014003/

eom

box, even when he's in another room, and comes in to remind us that he's the big cat round here. And he is like a puma, actually!