“Where is Leo?” is the first question people ask when they walk into the Helena Bay Cafe and Gallery. The puppy, named after the world-famous artist Leonardo da Vinci, adores the attention he is receiving.
The Saint Bernard, who stands more than 1.8m tall (if he stood up) and lives in a tucked-away house in Helena Bay, on the gorgeous coastal path to historic Russell in the Bay of Islands, befriends every visitor to the cafe and gallery.
Peter Brown, who owned three Newfoundlands, has always enjoyed big dogs, but Leo was “simply out of the box” and loved everyone. Brown adopted Leo as a 12-week-old puppy during the first lockdown in March 2020, and he has grown into a “huge boy” weighing 90kg.
Many people come solely to meet the famous dog. “A lot of visitors say they are here only to see the dog … can’t tell whether they are joking or not," according to him. Brown is used to Leo being a local celebrity.
“When he was a pup and had sharp claws, he would scratch the cars which cost me some paint jobs,” the canine has proven to be expensive. “He almost tripped an old lady once and managed to knock her phone. Despite that, she wasn’t unhappy at all, but I ended up paying half a grand.”
“Every morning, he’ll come to me, greet me, and make sure I am okay,” said Virginia Pope, a museum employee who looks after Leo when Brown is away, described him as one of the coolest dogs she has ever encountered.
“When Pete’s not here, he gets so sad and lonely, so I let him come in here. He is so gentle, especially around kids. He knows he’s getting all the attention and loves it.”
“People come from far and near just to meet him.” Since Leo arrived, Pope said they had more visitors, even in the winter, and many people would come in just to see the dog. “He loves people, will go back and forth, give his paw, and befriends everyone immediately.”
“Every morning when we come to work, he’ll come and greet us.” Susan Graham, a cafe employee, claimed the ‘delightful creature’; gets along with everyone. “We are forever wiping the slobber off us and cleaning up the customers he jumps on, but honestly everybody takes him well. When we shut the cafe door, he’ll just sit there, bang his paws and make those sad puppy eyes, and we eventually let him in. He just wants to come in and be around people all the time.”
