I liked this episode for the following reasons:
1. It portrays a learning-challenged man as the main character, and does so in a sympathetic light, showcasing some of the trials, as well as some of the triumphs that represent the everyday experience of people such as Joey.
2. It is a fact that learning-challenged individuals have a connection with animals, so it was nice to see a show that stars a "helpful" dog develop this into a nice story.
3. Let's be frank. It is not the easiest thing for someone to portray a learning-challenged person effectively when they themselves are not. Kudos go out to the late Edward Albert for doing for the most part a very admirable job in doing so.
4. As if the episode didn't tug at the old heart strings enough, they had to go and play that "Young and the Restless"'esque music at the end just to finish you off. :o)
Most of this episode was shot in downtown Uxbridge, Ontario. The building used as the pet store sits on the east side of Main St. at the corner of Brock St. The TD Bank seen in some of the shots looks very much the same today, 32 years later.