June 29, 2011 we said goodbye to our beloved Solo.  He was approximately 18 years old and was the sweetest boy.  He was a Chow/Golden mix, who looked like a lion or a bear but had a heart of gold.  We were the fourth owners of Solo.  He got his name because when he was approximately a year old he was tied to the door of a shelter and when the workers found him they named him “Solo” because he was by himself.
He was adopted by a single man named, Larry, and he had Solo for about 7 years before Larry died of cancer.  His last wish was to make sure that Solo had a good home.  My parents loved Solo and he was Sadie’s (my parents dog) best friend.   My parents had Solo for about 2 years, but when my dad suddenly died, my mom had to come live with us and she brought both Solo and Sadie with her.  We eventually ended up with Solo completely, and he became part of our family.  We had him for 7 years.  He loved flowers (we called him Ferdinand) and kites flying in the air.  He was a quiet companion.  He would just sit by your side for hours.  He never barked.  He loved his short walks.  All the neighbor kids would just marvel at him and point at him because they hadn’t seen a dog like him.
We have never had a dog with such a gentle disposition. He was a best friend to our daughter, Madison.  This picture of him was taken in October 2009 at approximately 16 years of age.  We weren’t sure how much longer he would be around because big dogs like him don’t usually live to such an old age, but he surprised and delighted us, because he was around almost another 2 years.
I love this pet section of the website.  I have enjoyed reading the stories of people and their animal companions.  I just wanted to share Solo, a.k.a. “Buddy” with others.  He was a dog worth remembering and will forever live in our hearts.

— Bev from Cypress, CA