I knew instantly this was the dog. I started screaming, literally, for my
sister. I wouldn't leave because I didn't want anyone to see the dog and take him before she got there. He was some kind of setter mix, with the build of an Irish, but black on top like a Gordon. He had a huge knot on his head, which I heard was a sign of a good setter. He was full grown, but looked young. Many people came, mostly because I was screaming "Bonnie, come here, I found your dog". Finally, Bonnie came, took one look and said "but Vic, he's ugly". I threw a fit and said we weren't leaving until we at least took him for a walk in the park next door. All the while, this dog just stood there, no excitement, eyes dark and dull. My sister knows my determination, so she said she would look at him. My brother thought I was crazy. We went to the front to wait for them, and he said "Why do you like him, he's so mopey".

At that moment, the door from the back opened and this dog came flying out, legs all over the place, I swear he had a smile on his face, eyes bright and so alive. Even I couldn't believe it. I figured he was depressed because everyone was giving the puppies so much attention and completely ignoring him. We took him for a walk in the park and he was an angel. He could sit, heel, never gave us a cause for worry. I convinced my sister to take him. When we went in to fill out the paperwork, the woman hesitated and said "you're probably not going to want him. I can't tell you anything about his history. He was tied to a bicycle rack at 10:30 at night and we found him the next morning." I quickly said "we'll take him". My sister gave me a look of horror, and I just again "we'll take him!". She knew better than to argue. My nephew immediately named him "Bandon", as in abandoned and they became brothers. When people saw him, no matter where we were, they would stop and say how beautiful he was and ask his breed.

There hasn't been a day in the last 13 years that Bandon has caused any kind of trouble. My sister works alot, and for the past few years, it was not uncommon to leave Bandon alone for 16 hours. She did get a couple of cats to keep him company, and he loves them to death. He is so well behaved, it's almost unnatural. I spent a lot of time with him because I helped train him, and I would keep him when she went out of town. I never had one complaint about him. He is lovable, playful, watchful, protective, friendly, people loving, animal loving...just the best. I recently got my own dog, now dogs (greyhounds), and Bandon had to get used to sharing me, but he did, and he loved coming over to my house to play. I don't think words could ever explain how many people were so strongly affected by Bandon, and how much he is loved. Bandon is now coming close to the end of his time with us. He is almost completely deaf, partially blind, and doesn't move around well. I can't imagine him not being around, and I don't know what my sister will do without him. I wanted to be able to thank someone there for making him available to us, and let other people know that a big, older dog is worth looking at. (Thanks to author V.S. for this story!)