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Newfoundland dogs are unique in several ways. One is, they look like a large black St. Bernard, but are not. They are water dogs with webbed feet for swimming, and their heavy coat is layered. The outer fur is heavy with some oil in it, and is pretty much waterproof. It is sort of like water and a duck's back. The inner fur is lighter, sort of springy, and is not oily. It is insulation.

I had owned a St. Bernard for five years while I was a banker in Pennsylvania, and had to find her a new home when I resigned my job to go back to college. We had been through a lot together, and in some ways she was more like a person than a dog. Of all of the things I gave up to make that transition in my life, giving "Connie" to a wonderful family in the countryside was the hardest thing to do.

Seven years passed, and I was introduced to Newfoundland dogs while living in Kalispell, Montana. I was struck by their intelligence, loyalty, big hearts, and general determination to stick with something until they were done with it. I would have acquired one for myself on the spot, but was already considering leaving Montana. A dog would have been an unnecessary complication. It was disappointing, and I did not forget them.

Florida seems to be an unlikely place for a dog that is known for its role accompanying fishermen on their ships in the frigid waters of the North Atlantic off the coast of Newfoundland. That is where their name originated.

I learned that their insulation from the cold would also be insulation from the heat. Or so I was told. But several breeders told the same story. So the path that was set years earlier became a reality.