This is an article that I read ago on the Internet at petplanet. Unfortunately there is no longer a link for other people to read this wonderful story. I have therefore retyped it below. Should the original author, or any person mentioned in the article wish me to remove it from my website please let me know.
Better Than Soap
Compassionate soldiers saving dogs lives isn’t anything new and not all soft soap stories are fiction!
Delving into breed history is always fascinating, but it can be difficult to sort out fact from fiction.
Before the 2nd World War, there may have been a couple of Leonbergers in the UK, but there is no real evidence. However, for many years, it was rumoured a British soldier had brought one back at the end of the war. It was said he had swapped some bars of soap for the dog!
Although there were records of this Leonberger being exhibited at Crufts in 1948, very little was known and the story was in danger of assuming the guise of yet another urban myth.
A couple of years ago, Jenny Kennish, then secretary of the Leonberger Club, was visiting a hospital in Basingstoke, England, with Gypsy, one of her dogs. An elderly patient instantly recognised the breed and said “My mate, Dave Gower, brought one back with him after the war. He paid for it with 20 bars of soap!”
With mounting excitement Jenny asked if his mate was still alive and how he might be traced. Then Jenny loaded a couple of dogs into her car and set off in search. After a few enquiries, the house was identified. With some trepidation she knocked on the door. It was answered by an elderly man and Jenny introduced herself by asking if he was the person who had swapped 20 bars of soap for a Leonberger.
Without hesitation he replied, “It was 10 bars, not 20!” Jenny and the two Leonbergers were invited indoors. This was a very emotional experience, as one-time Gunner Gower had not seen a Leonberger in nearly 40 years.
He was able to corroborate his story with newspaper
cuttings and photos from the 1940s and 1950s.
David Gower fought throughout most of the war as part of a tank crew and was
involved in a lot of action. In 1945, when British troops entered the
village of Osterwitz on the Austria/Italian border, his tank was billeted on
a farm. It was here that he saw, and was immediately attracted to, a very
handsome, but hungry dog, which was tethered to a fence.
The farmer made no secret that he intended to kill the dog and boil the fat
for soap. These were extremely hard times, when most of the essentials in
life were in short supply.
It is not always easy to explain what can attract any of us to a particular
dog, but David immediately felt determined to save this one, although he had
no idea what the breed was.
David rushed back to the mess, where other soldiers were asked to hand over
their own precious bars of soap and a deal was struck. I asked if he had to
make any bargains with his colleagues, but they were apparently only too
pleased to help save the dog. (I wonder if any of these lads are still
around and remember this event?)
The dog was saved, named Wilson after the American President, and eventually
brought back to England, via Milan. In David’s home Wilson developed into a
much-loved pet and was always particularly fond of children – a trait very
evident in the breed today.
Later, and only after a lot of very hard work, David then acquired a bitch
from Hanover who he named ‘Lassie’ and she was mated to ‘Wilson’. The
result was a couple of puppies born in 1952.
Wilson was registered by the UK Kennel Club as Golden Sunset and caused some
excitement when taken to Cruft's in 1948 as an ‘exhibit’, being the only one
of its kind.
In 1949, David refused an offer of £700, a huge sum in those days, for
Wilson to go to Rhodesia (Zimbabwe).
I was very privileged to be introduced to David recently, when I was
accompanied by Jenny and my own dog, Basil.
Having talked to him at great
length and after viewing his various documents, I am very happy to confirm
that ‘He was that soldier!’
By Neil Ewart
