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By GARY REMAL
Staff Writer Sunday, June 17, 2007

Bill Irwin, 67, blind since the age of 28 as the result of an eye disease, said he and his wife spent Friday night in their camper in the Wal-Mart parking lot.

Augusta police Sgt. Michael Small said the couple reported the dog, Colby, was tied to a tree outside their recreational vehicle the last time they saw him.

They each thought the other had returned the dog to the camper before driving away between 8:30-9 a.m. Saturday, Irwin said.

"I reached back to pet him behind my wife's seat and he wasn't there, and we realized we had left without him," Irwin said.

By the time they returned, the dog was gone.

Another camper reported seeing a man come up to the dog and lead him away.

Irwin said he hopes the man was trying to help and will return Colby. "I'm praying that's the case," he said. "I don't think there was foul play."

But Small said police were unable to find the dog, and despite continuing to search, by Saturday afternoon, Colby had still not turned up.

"We went the extra mile to look around for the dog and we continue to look around," the Augusta police sergeant said. "I suspect somebody picked the dog up. It's too bad."

Irwin said Colby has an identifying microchip implanted in his skin and is identified with a collar tag that says "The Seeing Eye," the Morristown, N.J., organization that trained him.

He described Colby as a black Labrador retriever with a gray patch under his lip, weighing about 70 pounds.

Irwin urged anyone who knows anything about his guide dog to contact the Augusta police.

"He's more than a Seeing Eye dog," Irwin said. "He's one of my closest friends."

Gary Remal -- 621-5642

gremal@centralmaine.com

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