that they meet is an older gentleman named Candy. Candy has lived a long and hard life on the ranch and has nothing to show for it. During his time on the ranch he has lost his hand, grown old, and feels that he has become worthless. The name "Candy" is an interesting one for this character though. When you think of candy you see children eating it while running around in the yard having a good time without a care in the world. This is the exact opposite of what the character in the novel is. The restless demon of age has caught up with him and he is not able to move as fast as he once did; even his dog is unable to ward off the negative effects of time.Candy loves his dog with all of his heart; it has been his best friend for years and according to Candy he has "Had him since he was a pup. I herded sheep with him." (44) Even though he cannot run as fast as in his prime or herd sheep like he did when he was younger Candy loves him just the same. He appreciates all of the joy and loyalty that his once great dog has brought to him during his life and is ready to let his friend now live out the rest of his natural life. Unfortunately that is not the way that some of the other people in the room see it. Carlson feels "This ol' dog jus' suffers hisself all the time. If you was to take him out and shoot him right in the back of the head... right there, why he'd never know what hit him"(45). Carlson even offers to give him a new dog to replace the one that he is about to destroy. The way that Candy sees it is that he is not hurting anyone and that there is no reason to have to end his life prematurely. Even though Candy loves his dog more than anything else in the world he chooses to let someone shoot his dog in the back of the head. After all that they had been through and all the years of loyal service that his supposed best friend had performed for Candy, when pressured into a decision, he chose to defy his loyal companion and make the dec...
