Getting a Saint Bernard isn’t something to take lightly. But when a woman named Jayne came across a picture of Cosmo on the Hearts United for Animals website, she knew she had to adopt the 2-year-old giant.

The only catch is that Jayne lived in New York and Cosmo was in Nebraska.

But she was so smitten with the dog who was surrendered by his breeder for unknown reasons that she decided to make the trip to meet him.

Shelter workers just loved this gentle giant and couldn’t explain why someone would surrender such a sweet, loving animal (especially a breeder, who is presumably well-prepared to take care of the large dog). Cosmo himself seemed pretty confused about it too and couldn’t understand why he had been abandoned.

When Jayne flew to Nebraska from her home in upstate New York to meet Cosmo, the connection she felt with him after simply seeing his photo was there in real life as well. She was in love and knew Cosmo was the right dog for her and her family.

Of course, the shelter workers were protective of the sweet pup and wanted to make sure the two would get along. They stood by with tears in their eyes as Jayne and Cosmo played together – partly because they knew he would be leaving but mostly because they knew he would finally get his first forever home.

Everyone agreed that Cosmo should go home to New York with Jayne and she rented a car to drive him the whole way.

“I don’t know if Cosmo has any understanding of what’s happening, but I think he understands there’s a human here who wants to give him some love and he’s pretty happy about it,” she said in an interview with The Dodo.

Cosmo wasn’t exactly excited to get in the car at first – that can be a tall order for dogs this big – but once he figured out how to climb in he was calm and pleasant throughout the entire journey with his new mom.

Finally, it was time to introduce Cosmo to his new family – and it was more than just Jayne’s husband. Dogs Poppy and Grendel, first got to sniff out their new sibling.

Luckily, he passed muster.

Then, Cosmo finally took his first steps into his first home, inaugurating his time as a beloved pet.

He wasn’t quite sure how to go about it at first, simply wandering around, perhaps wondering if this all really belonged to him.

But as Cosmo sniffed his way through his new home, he got more and more comfortable.

He even made friends with the family’s rabbit!

“It’s nice to see him in a big space, see him spread out and put his belly on a cool floor, and just know he’s finally staying in a space, a place where can feel happy and comfortable,” Jayne said.

Cosmo got some human siblings as well – Alice and Owen. And that seemed to be his favorite part.

As he watched the kids coming towards him ready to pet him, he didn’t panic, he reveled in it – new best friends!

Now Cosmo’s days are full of safety and security and belly rubs.

And he’s managed to claim the couch as his own as well.

Cosmo has now been in his new home for about a year and he’s everything the family had hoped for in a pet.

“Animals just understand life a little bit better than people sometimes. It’s like they know what’s important, and if they have love and food and a roof over their heads…that’s all that really matters,” Jayne said.

Be sure to scroll down below to see Jayne’s interview and heartwarming footage from her first moments with Cosmo.

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Source: The Dodo via YouTube