05/15/2026
Fieldstone Farm had to say our goodbyes to one of the sweetest souls yesterday. We have undoubtedly lost a massive presence at the farm that our family, the community and that our inner world grew to love, and it has left us with a huge hole in our hearts.
Poland. Where do I even begin? We flew all the way to Poland to meet you in hopes of picking out the most special boy, and you were nothing short of amazing from the very start. That is where our adventures began. You have traveled the world more than most and flown first class doing so. From visiting the Baltic Sea in Poland, sneaking 100lb dog into fine dining, hogging two plane seats to yourself, teaching you English and then our Michigan adventures began.
Unbeknownst to you, you would come home to 5 new wives. You were a happy boy! This was the start of creating your legacy. In our opinion, you were exactly what the breed should represent. We have always strived for breeding quality over quantity, and we were so proud to welcome such a great representation of the Bernese Mountain Dog into our program and home.
9 amazing years, Poland. Almost made it to 10. Some say that is pretty old for a Bernese, but it is still never long enough.
I read a quote recently that read:
“Dogs have no concept of the future, they only know how you treat them in the past and the present. Letting them go on a good day is a gift, and keeping them around is only selfish.”
And so that is what we did. We let him go on a good day. When he still had a sense of Poland about him, but also giving us that look in his eye that he was ready.
I held him tight as he took his last earthly breath, and with that he took a piece of my heart. The funny thing is, I never wanted to love him. Before getting him, I had lost my sweet Nala and I had said I would never love a Berner the same again. I think in some weird way, it was her way of coming back to me in another life, because he chose me from the very start and had that same sweet look in his eyes. 🥹
Until we meet again, Poland. You were loved so very much.