People often find comfort and understanding in the eyes of a dog, but when Baldone gazes, it is something else. 

“He looks into your soul,” Baldone’s new owner, Christina James, said.  

His profound, brown-eyed stare is far from the Great Pyrenees’ only remarkable trait. After spending nearly three months alone in the woods last winter, resiliency and bravery may top the list. 

Baldone, so named because he had little hair as a puppy, was riding in a truck with his owner, Rob Bowen, on U.S. 93 about 20 miles north of Whitefish last November. Bowen died when his truck ran off the road. The dog stayed at the site, near his owner, until he was startled by the arrival of first responders and bolted into the woods. 

Several community members searched the forestland around Olney for the large white dog. They left food, checked for tracks and used trail cameras, hoping to find Baldone and bring him to safety, but he eluded everyone. 

Whitefish’s Bonnie Hodges and Suzi Law printed flyers, informed the media and spent hours driving neighboring roads, talking to residents about the missing pup. 

After 84 days in the woods, Baldone decided it was time to come inside. He found the barn of a friendly couple who fed him and contacted the Humane Society of Northwest Montana. 

Baldone made himself at home with the James family in February. After his initial visit, he did not want to leave; he knew he was home. James said he acted like he’d been there forever. 

"He's the bestest boy,” James said. “I tell him all the time, ‘I'm glad you picked me for your mommy.’” 

At home in Kalispell, Baldone has two brothers -- Koda, a Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepherd mix, and Roscoe, a 14-year-old black Labrador who oversees his giant siblings. 

“They're best friends. They play all day, every day,” James said. “He definitely landed on his feet and immediately fit right in with these weirdos.” 

Baldone weighed 70 pounds when he arrived at the shelter. Now, at 135, he still has a few more pounds to add. James ensures he regains his weight slowly and safely.  

He is eating a high-protein dog food that his canine brothers also enjoy, so the whole pack has adopted the new diet. The big dogs eat about 6 cups a day and the family goes through a 60-pound bag of dog food every week and a half. 

When Chewy, the online pet supply store, heard his tale, it sent four boxes of dog food, treats and toys for Baldone. 

James and her husband, Mike, are thrilled to have Baldone join their family, even though sometimes, James affectionately calls the new addition Meatball, because of his massive head. 

“He shoves his head into your face at 5:30 in the morning to wake you up and say, ‘Good morning! It's the best day ever! We need to get up!’” she said. “Yesterday it was 6. He let me sleep in.” 

Surprisingly and fortunately, Baldone suffered no long-term health effects from his time alone in the woods. He did sustain bit of frostbite on his paws and chest which has healed. 

"He has no food aggression. The other dogs can come eat his bowl of food and he's like, ‘OK, I'll just eat later,’” James said. “You would think somebody who lived in the woods like that would have resource guarding and food aggression. He has none.” 

Truly a gentle giant, Baldone was extra cautious with James recently while she recovered from a knee injury. 

"He was just the gentlest while I was on crutches,” she said. “He’d want a snuggle, so he’d come up to the couch and kind of half lean on my upper body but not climb on me. It was the sweetest thing.” 

Nocturnal and bred to be livestock guardians, James’ two Pyrenees have adapted to life in a subdivision by taking turns walking the perimeter of the property at night. 

"They rotate who's on night shift and who sleeps in the room with us,” she said. “There are no deer on Baldone's watch.” 

The dogs go camping with James, and they love car rides, taking up the entirety of the truck’s back seat.  

Baldone’s original siblings, Bowen’s three other Great Pyrenees, are in new homes and, yes, Baldone does wear a tracking tag on his collar now. 

James has adopted dogs from shelters for years. She tends to choose older dogs or ones that are harder to place. Koda, for instance, was a “livestock guardian reject” who had been returned to the shelter twice, and four families had owned Roscoe before James. 

“I grew up with Labradors and German Shepherds, but I've warned my husband, unfortunately, his German Shepherd wife is now a Pyrenees wife,” James joked. “You get the protectiveness and loyalty of a German Shepherd with the goofy cuddliness of a Lab in a human-sized package.” 

A dog who experienced the sudden loss of his owner, home and siblings, Baldone is a brilliant example of the resiliency of the animal spirit.  

James said the extent of his trauma is only apparent sometimes. 

“Every so often he'll have bad dreams,” she said. “He'll have days where he gets a little sad.” 

Most of the time, however, Baldone sleeps on his back, spread eagle, without a care in the world. He’s safe now.

    Baldone happily accepts a smooch from Christina James on his massive head. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)

    Baldone is safe after spending the winter in the woods alone. (Julie Engler/Whitefish Pilot)