Mr. Barbeau’s quiet shelter (6 photos)

There are many examples in history when our four-legged friends demonstrated true heroism. And some simply remained faithful to their human until the end.





At the top of Equinox Mountain in Vermont is the final resting place of Mr. Barbeau, a loyal and devoted friend of Dr. Joseph George Davidson.



Equinox Mountain in Vermont

Davidson was the head of Union Carbide Corporation, where he was partly responsible for such important 20th century inventions as mustard gas, Bakelite, and safety glass.





Towards the end of his successful career, Davidson began buying up land on Equinox, one of Vermont's tallest mountains. By the time he retired, he owned nearly eight square miles of land, with winding roads leading to the summit. He lived out the rest of his days there with his wife and beloved pet, Mr. Barbeau, a Norwegian Elkhound/Siberian Husky mix.



In a tragic accident, a 12-year-old dog was shot and killed by a hunter. Davidson banned hunting on the mountain, appealed to the public for information about the gunman, and offered a reward, but the identity of the accidental shooter remains unknown.



Transfiguration Monastery

The sadness of this incident remains etched in granite beneath Mr. Barbeau's portrait: "We loved him, and he repaid that love with the devotion that only a dog can give. Shot by a malicious hunter on November 24, 1955."



The "no hunting" rule remains in place to this day. Dr. Davidson left his estate to the Carthusian order of monks on the condition that they would care for his wife after his death. The brothers kept their promise, and the Davidson estate is now the Monastery of the Transfiguration, the only Carthusian monastery in North America, located on Mount Equinox in Sandgate, Vermont. The brothers still tend Mr. Barbeau's grave.