The hair of the dog

Pub patrons the world over know the old saying about how helpful the hair of the dog can be – and at the Royal Mail Inn, Bridge Street, Bideford, they do not have to go far to find one.

Mr and Mrs Terry Sleigh, the licensees, boast not one dog, but three – and all St. Bernards. Not long ago there were even more for Shasta, a three-year-old weighing in at over 11 stone, produced 11 puppies. Unfortunately only five survived, and homes have now been found for three of them. One of the remainder, named Bass, is to stay, but a home is being sought for the other.

Shasta costs between £1 to £1.50 a week to keep. She is named after a mountain in northern California – what more appropriate name for a mountain of a dog!

Gazette article 18 August 1972