Doty brought Beau home in 1994 when his longtime partner, Wally Roberts, was dying of AIDS. Mistaking Beau's post-operative drugged stupor (he'd just been neutered) for a calm temperament suitable for both Wally and Arden, their mature and gentlemanly black Labrador, Doty brings 3-year-old Beau (a golden retriever) home and within moments Beau shows his true colors and total lack of training - jumping on to Wally's bed, licking his face exuberantly and devouring his lunch. Thus begins a love affair between man and dogs. After Wally's death, it is the dogs' insistent demands that life go on - meals served, walks taken and affection reciprocated - that provides Doty with the anchor he needs to see him through his desperate despair.  As time passes the ...