One of Healdsburg’s fluffiest and most popular residents has reached a milestone birthday.
Bodhi, a newfoundland owned by Paul Von Hirtz, is now 10-years-old and still going strong.
This particular birthday is a big deal since the breed is known to only have an eight to 10 year lifespan. According to canna-pet.com, the large dogs often have issues with hip dysplasia, cataracts and bloating, known as Gastric Torsion.
Von Hirtz said the 160-pound Bodhi is quite healthy and still enjoys his walks.
The dog’s popularity partly comes from his walks into town where he is welcome at many of the Plaza businesses.
“He has a dog walker named Fred Smith who lives in town so when we travel he walks him,” Von Hirtz said. “Apparently people have said that they see him at John and Zeke’s, so Fred takes him on a sort of social walk.”
Smith said he has been walking Bodhi for several years and loves it.
“He is an incredible dog and he is such a loving and friendly dog, probably one of the best dogs that I’ve walked,” Smith said. “He is well received everywhere.”
The brown-eyed pooch also gets walks to Flying Goat Coffee on Center Street where he is treated to a dog cookie.
He also marches in the annual FFA twilight parade.
“He likes to wander to the sidelines and meet people rather than just be in the main parade,” Von Hirtz said.
While Bodhi enjoys his outings, his favorite spot is on his sun-worn bed in the front yard where he can watch the world go by and receive a few pets from passerby.
“This is his favorite spot, he likes to just see what is going on and visit people. Everybody seems to know his name, they don’t know us but they know him,” Von Hirtz said.
However, one time when the kind giant was sitting in his usual spot he was mistaken for a bear.
“When he was probably just a couple of years old the neighbor across the street here, one of the kids, saw him out front. He wasn’t on the leash, and she stepped out the front door and literally thought he was a bear. She screamed, ran inside and called the police and they actually came down … and just said keep his leash on. He ended up being in the Healdsburg police log in the Tribune,” Von Hirtz said.
On the other hand, Von Hirtz said that oftentimes delivery personnel or people walking by will come up the steps to say hi to Bodhi.
“One of the cutest things is when the FedEx freight guy comes up. Whenever he sees Bodhi he just lays down right here and cuddles with him,” Von Hirtz said.
The Von Hirtz family has had Bodhi since 2009 when they selected him from a breeder in Rochester, New York.
“He was born Oct. 8. He was bred at Denali Farms in Rochester, New York. We had looked around at a bunch of breeders in California and there were quite a few, but nobody had a little of puppies coming when we were looking,” Von Hirtz said. “He’s just been really gentle. We have an 8-year-old son and he’s great with kids. He has been a good companion.”
