Otto seen him!

Scout catching some warm rays!


My husband has been secretly thinking to himself, "why the hell does doesn't she write something about my dog? Why is everything about Otto...Otto this...Otto that... Otto ...Otto, Otto, Otto!!! I think secretly he would like to have this blog devoted to his black lab Scout.

True, I seldom mention our black lab Scout. He is a wonderful dog. He is 10 1/2 years old and a true gentleman. He epitomizes the breed. He is loyal, easy, loving, needy and kind. If you asked Scout to "sit and stay" one time... say for 3 days or so.... he would. If you got lost in the wilderness and you were alone with just Scout and whispered, "Scout, lie down next to me to keep me warm and don't leave," he would do just that. He pauses in our driveway every morning, waiting for an invitation to walk with us. He is obedient and he is tolerant. He doesn't require a leash when outside, he has no ambition to ever leave your comfortable heel. He could be a poster child for the perfect Lab. Scout is a very nice, handsome, well footed, black Labrador from Champion Canadian parents.

zzzzzzzzzzzzz....yawn....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...

About 4 1/2 years ago, while making a cup of coffee a man came behind me in our kitchen...shortly thereafter I decided that I didn't need a nice, needy and highly food motivated animal, I needed protection. It wasn't Scouts fault, he doesn't have a mean or aggressive bone in his big fat head.

Enter Otto.

Otto isn't at all like Scout. Otto is affectionate but only on his very own terms and only to the people and animals that he chooses. He is independent in his thinking and isn't needy in the least except for the basics. He is never motivated by food from a stranger nor will he accept it. Good boy.

True, I clean his teeth, trim his nails, bathe him, feed him and pretty much cater to his every need and he barely acknowledges me. Also true that Otto would never retrieve anything unless he wanted to retrieve it. He would with 100% certainty leave me if he could get off of his leash if an attractive squirrel crossed our path. If I was lost in the woods he would not stay like ol' trusty Scout, no way, Otto would be like Elsa, born free to roam and eat deer poop. He might come back but the jury is still out.

But...if you are alone in the house and going downstairs in the dark, he will do a complete recon with just a quick whistle.

and he hears things before they happen...because Otto (like other Anatolians) has remarkable senses.

and if the doorbell rings .....Otto will answer first, insistent that he position himself between me and the door...he is no welcome wagon.

and even when he is in sleeping coma, paws up on my pillow..he has one eye open.

and above all else in our house, Otto has my back.

I was going to only write about Scout but even thinking about my Otto, my naughty bundle of joy, just takes me over!

Otto is going Holistic!

Yesterday I received an email from a woman who believes in holistic solutions to allergies and other ailments. I went to the Internet to investigate her suggestion of "Traditional Tibetan Healing remedies for modern ailments." She suggested that Otto try "Tibetan Allergy Support" ($33.00/60 pills) which as she claims "will help the root causes of why the body is having reactions in the first place by helping to rebalance the immune and adrenal systems." She went on to suggest Tibetan Kidney support...another $33.00, some Beta Sitosterol...another $21.00 and lastly, Xanthium....for 20 bucks.

Ohmmm ....Otto might be going Holistic but my husband will be going Ballistic! I think I better just try one bottle of the Allergy stuff.

I appreciate her taking the time to help us come up with remedies. I mean, nothing has helped either of us. Both of our allergies are just terrible and meds from any Doctor or from any over the counter prescription really offer minimal temporary relief so at this point our downside is nil...

www.tibetanherbs.com/allergysupport.html

I got a kick out of some of the testimonals. They are a far cry from the Mayo Clinic!

It might be of note that I don't even pause to look at the organic section of our market..and those bins of open grains and granola where little dirty hands have helped themselves on an hourly basis, I would rather starve to death...

But...all that negative thinking... well it is soon to be in the past. The cheeseheads are going to Tibetan meds!

I will try not to be alarmed that both Otto and I are going to be taking the same pills... comprised of things that I can't pronounce nor have I ever heard of...

Punica granatum -
Angelica archangelica -
Elletaria cardamomum -
Piper longum -
Tribulus terrestris -
Crocus sativus -
Mirabilis himalaica -

Who knows, maybe, just maybe there is some truth in all this holistic organic stuff. I am going to purchase one bottle and give it a whirl.

Full of Sheep

It would appear that my life revolves around Otto. He touches my heart every time he shoves his favorite toy "Moo" into my rear end...his attempt to be playful or his hint that I am resembling a Moo myself in the rear...So much of my day is consumed thinking about his needs and his happiness that sometimes it occurs to me that he is no longer just a dog, he is a mystical being that is somehow dictating the way that I live, where I go, whom I speak to and what I speak about.

Take for example my mother who passed away in October. I was estranged from her and her second husband for years and I was comfortable with that. When I learned that she was in the final stages of her life in the hospice ward my husband became insistent that I call her. He wouldn't let up. I thought about it and put my guilt meter on fast forward to the "what if's" and agreed that possibly it might be better to drop the dime then not...so with a sweaty hand and a shot of scotch I called her room. The endless ringing was enough to make me terminal ill. She answered on about the 12th ring with a voice I knew I would never hear again. I identified myself and immediately told her how sorry I was that she was so sick. I could hear her trying to reposition herself to sit up.....silence and heavy breathing...and I wished I had made the shot a large double.

....and then in a fairly clear but heavy voice she said, "Tell me about the dog." I said, "Mom, his name is Otto, he an Anatolian Shepherd Dog from Turkey. He is bred for livestock protection and guardianship. He looks just like Mort." (Mother adored Mort. He was a huge great dane/shepherd mix dog that found us in Connecticut when I was about 16 years old. I found an old picture of Mort and Shotzie, our German Shepherd.

33 years ago, Mort greeted my first official "date" at the door by ripping his shirt at the neck ....which was subsequently the end of the date and soon the end of Mort.)

Fast forward to Ottoland...

I said to mother, "Otto is very protective and watches over me like I am his flock " and with that my mother said " That's because he knows you are full of sheep." We both laughed for the first time in so many years and through her rattle I heard her say, "Call means the world to me."

Click...

I don't think the whole conversation lasted more then a minute yet as corny as it sounds it covered a lifetime for both of us.