Patch is a search-and-rescue volunteer and part-time sheepdog trial competitor who channels his intense herding instinct into saving lives and winning ribbons. He has an almost superhuman focus and work ethic that makes him invaluable in the field but difficult to live with - he cannot turn off the constant assessment, the need to solve, the drive to fix. He is brilliant and devoted but desperately needs someone who can tell him to stop working and actually be heard.