I live with my two Border Collies, Buster and Sammy. I am a registered nurse and sometimes care for people in my own home. One evening, a while back, I had taken an elderly patient into my house on a rainy night. She was frightened and I was trying to get her situated and make her comfortable. To set her at ease, I put the dogs outside.

So, while I was working inside, outside, my dog, Buster, was angry with me for leaving him in the pouring rain and he disappeared. When I realized what had happened, I immediately went to look for him. This meant getting my 98-year-old patient into my car in the dark, keeping her calm and looking for Buster. We toured the neighborhood in the car but couldn’t find him. I called the Police Department who were very kind. I told them he was chipped and licensed but that he’d lost his collar. The police issued an APB saying a dog had got out.

They found him next morning, soaking wet on the sidewalk. He must have been in a bad mood because he was reported as vicious and he’s really not. Buster is a big hunting dog, well over 80 lbs and he’s real sharp – stunning to look at. The officers who picked him up said he was submissive, with his tail tucked between his legs. They even kept him in the office because he was shy of the other dogs they had. One officer said, “If he’s not chipped, I’m taking him home!”

When I got him back the next day, poor Buster had a whimsical look, like he was sad and crying. The skies don’t open often here in California with our amazing micro-climate and we were happily reunited in the sunshine.