Christmas Visitors

My sister Judi, and her two grandsons, Lawson and Weston came over to give the dogs an early Christmas present.  They had a yellow bone for Bogart, a red bone for Bandit, and a brown bone for Otto.  The dogs quickly dove into their gifts, with Bogart finishing first, followed by Otto and lastly Bandit, with age comes some understanding that if you chew on it slowly it will last longer!  They Lawson opened another present which turned out to be three dog tennis balls.  I say dog tennis balls because they could NOT be used for actually playing tennis because they don't bounce but Bo and Otto loved them.  Lawson threw the ball and Bogart retrieved it..Wonders never cease, this is the Golden Retriever that doesn't retrieve but he did tonight.  Even after our Christmas visitors left Bo and Otto were still enjoying their new gifts.  They chewed on the balls and a couple hours later we only had two balls because one was shredded all over the floor..a sure sign of a good present!  Thank you Lawson and Weston!

Can Dogs Be Resocialized

A few years back I would take Bo, Bandit and Otto to Kathy's house where we would join up with OD and Shadow (Labs) and walk for about an hour in an open area along the Fox River.  Bandit wasn't the friendliest at the beginning to OD or Shadow, and Otto seemed to bother both dogs by his quick darting and crashing into them, but Bo was never a problem, he enjoyed the girls company and also enjoyed walking along with us, rather than the run away and comeback that Otto exhibited.



Otto was probably off running somewhere

 Well, today that all changed.  A man was walking his dogs pretty close to our lot line.  Bo was in the yard (we have an electric fense), but only one of the man's dogs was on a leash, the other walked along side him.  Bo could not handle this and darted, left the yard.  He tackled the dog not on a leash.  They did not dogfight, Bo just knocked the dog down.  Scott went out and grabbed Bo, who seemed a bit confused.  Did he feel the need to defend his property?  These dogs were not attempting to enter the yard.  We are finding more and more times all our dogs are very possessive of our yard.  That is why we have Otto on a rope, so we know where he is at all times.  But Bo...he has always been the most friendly dog so this behavior seems unusual for him.
Maybe, because he doesn't socialize with dogs in general, he has become unsocial.  He is by far, one of the best dogs we have ever had, this can't be his new personna.  So, first I took Otto for a walk around the block, so to speak, so he would get out and get a little exercise.  Then I took Bo to the Dog Park.  Now that he walks so well with a harness on, I kept him on the harness until we entered the Park.  We walked along the side for a while and then I removed it and we continued to walk, then we walked into the open area.  A man threw a ball and three dogs chased after it.  Bo reacted, saw the action and took about 10 steps towards them, then stopped and came back to me.  "Good Boy," I said.  Then the man did it again, this time Bo ran towards the ball, and right up to a Black Lab.  They looked at each other, tails upward, then noses touched, then the lab ran back with the other dogs and Bo ran back to me.  "Good Boy," I said again.  Hurray, first step was a success but I didn't want to overdo it, so I gave Bo a treat, and we walked towards the exit.  Bo grabbed the leash as we were about to leave, I attached it and we walked happily to the car. 
I really hope to take Bo to the Dog Park at least once a week, even if it's only for 15 or 20 minutes, just so he can socialize and realize random dogs are not enemies, most are very friendly, just like Bogart has always been. 

A side note, I really hate that people walking their dogs think the small subdivision park, which our backyard is attached to, is a dog park.  IT IS NOT.  All dogs, whether they are the best behaved in the world or really need some exercise, still should be kept on a leash.  The Dog Park is off River Road, less than a mile away, run your dogs there, not in a community park. 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Halloween has always been for the kids, but lately more and more adults plan and participate in Halloween costume parties, decorated houses and lawns.  Dressing up and pretending to be someone or something else can be fun and liberating.  I received an email entitled "Why Dogs Bite Their Owners" and it showed pictures of pets dressed up in funny, silly, and some unbelievable outfits.  Who does that to those poor animals, hmmmm...sorry but I do.  Yes, I have dressed up the dogs year after year.  Though most of the outfits are handmade, and most are extremely easy because let's face it, these dogs are not models and they will not sit still long.  Usually the hardest part is getting the picture.
This year Bandit, Bogart and Otto were     SEE NO EVIL, HEAR NO EVIL, SPEAK NO EVIL

almost a totum pole replication.....yes, the costume was simple, but try and get these guys to pose like this...it isn't easy!

Here are a few costumes from years past:        99, 100 and 101 Dalmations  (My Favorite!)

Santa and Reindeer

Ghoulie

LIONS

Security Guard

The Caped Crusaders

Don't they all look happy in all their outfits!

Survivor (Last in a series of stories)

Otto, weak and thin, spends the first few days just lying around.  He gets his medicine (sporanox solution) a squirt in the mouth every day.  This people medicine seemed to creep up in price every month.  Otto started out with his own prescription card with Walgreens.  It said Otto dog Hays on it but after the first month, Walgreens no longer would accept it.  The bottle of sporanox lasted for one month, started around $100.00 and creeped over $200 a bottle by the time Otto was done taking it.  Otto was on the medicine for over 6 months.  The first week was the hardest, not sure if the medicine would destroy the spores inside him before the spores destroyed him.  But, as we all know, Otto is a fighter and now he is a survivor. 
Otto actually grew to be a better, more behaved dog following this illness.  Whenever I would go out anywhere, I would have to put Otto into his extra large cage.  This continued for quite a few months, but eventually, he was allowed the freedom of the house, which he still has today. 

Yes, Otto, now a survivor of Blastomytosis, did not return to his home in Chicago with Kyle and Leah.  Nick, my first grandchild came along, and there was just a lot going on in their condo.  Besides, Otto had grown used to being with his two best friends Bo and Bandit and has become part of the family here in Wisconsin. 
Oh, I don't want anyone to think that Otto is the best behaved dog on the planet..oh no far from it, there are more stories to tell about the trouble Otto gets into and overall he has been an interesting addtion to the family.  Otto had been through a lot in two short years and it is not known if the Blasto will effect his longivity or will cause any other future problems.  For right now, Otto has put his paw prints on my heart and all around the house, his unique personality keeps all of us on our toes.

Never Gonna Keep Him Down

I last wrote in May about the "Story of Otto Von Bismark" when he went back home to Chicago after beating the Blastomycosis.  This is not the end of the turmol in Otto's life, no, there is more to his story.  Otto did go back home to Chicago, and he did settle back into doggy daycare.  He had gotten used to not being alone from his time in Wisconsin having Bo and Bandit as constant companions, so leaving him alone in their condo while Kyle and Leah went to work just wasn't going to work out.  Luckily doggy daycare did and Otto was back to taking long walks and experiencing life in Chicago.
A few months later, everything changed.  Blasto does have a reoccurance rate, and Otto was struck hard.  This time not only did he get extremely tired, with sore joints, he also developed lumps all over his body.  One large lump right along this throat.  Kyle and Leah called me and asked if I would like to go along with them as they take Otto back to their vet.  I went to their place and was shocked at how thin Otto looked.  He tried to come say hi to me but it was hard for him to walk.  Kyle carried him into their car and onto the vet we went. 
In the vet's waiting room, Otto's head was resting on Kyle's arm.  This was not a happy site.  The four of us went into the examination room.  The doctor did not like what she saw.  It turns out, when Otto was on the medication months earlier, and we had thought he was cured, in fact there were still spores that had survived inside him and continued to grow.  These lumps indicated a very serious stage and surviving is not guaranteed.  The doctor explained that this next round of treatment would require at least 6 months of medication.  Leah and Kyle had a decision to make, both emotionally and financially.  A transfusion, medication and hospital stay was going to really add up.  Was Otto in pain?  Was he able to eat with the lump on his throat?  Was putting him to sleep a more humane decision?  While tears filled everyones eyes suddenly something happed.  Otto, who had been lying motionless on the exam table, stood up and jumped down, went to the door and started to stratch it.  I said, "He's not ready to give up."  This brief display of determination, determination that has always been Otto's demeanor, made the decision.  Otto would come back home with me to Wisconsin.  Kyle and Leah, both partly relieved and emotionally exhausted, agreed.  Let's give him a chance. 
Everything was packed up and put in my car.  Otto was placed in the front seat, on his quilt.  He curled up and slept the whole two hour drive.  In Wisconsin, I carried him into the house and he continued to sleep.
Would he survive the next 6 months of treatment, could I get him to eat, or would he spend his last days with his two best buddies?

Snookers, and Jumpers and Gamblers, Oh My!

Today Kathy and I went to the Brookfield Indoor Soccer Complex to watch the Dog Agility competition.  On two fields, obstacles were set up and dogs and handlers ran through the course.  It was listed that there would be different levels of Snookers, Jumpers and Gamblers.  What is a Snooker and a Gambler?  Both are the kinds of courses at a Dog Agility competition.  A Snooker course is when a dog and handler devise a strategy to gather as many points as possible by alternating between "red" obstacles and obstacles of other colors.  Red is typically hurdles, and other obstacles would be tunnels, chutes, seesaws, weave poles, or bridges.  The dog (off leash) does red-color-red-color ...etc, until a mistake is made or time runs out.  A Gambler run is when the dog and handler completes a number of obstacles, all of which have a point value.  After an opening time frame they must complete a "gamble" which is a series of obstacles the dog must run at a distance from the handler to make the points count. 
We saw many Border Collies, but we also saw a couple Dobermans, a giant Schnauzer, some German Shepard mix dogs, a Dalmation, a Pointer, and a Golden Retriever that looked exactly what Bandit looked like when he was a young dog. 
The competition was fun to watch, and I would like to go back with Bogart, to see if he likes the entertainment.  It runs all day today and tomorrow at the BISC.

Pointer on Bridge

Bandit Look-Alike

Unconditional Love

Lesson Number 2:  ALL my dogs have taught me about unconditional love.  Anyone with a dog knows this.  It doesn't matter what happened at work, at school or on the playing field, your dog will make you feel special when he sees you.  It doesn't matter if you just yelled at him, or if you are lying on the couch with the flu, your dog is there for you.  It doesn't matter if I am out of the house for 5 hours or 5 minutes, when I come in the dogs are at the door excited to see me.  When you are happy, they are happy.  When you are sad, they can look at you with the most understanding eyes and you know, you have their support.  They can lift your spirits with their unending energy. They can relax you with their steady heartbeat as they lie against you.  All my dogs, over the last 34 years; Blaze, Buck, Baron, Bandit, Bogart and Otto, all have taught me that love with no conditions is something special and truely warms the heart.


Lawson and Bo

                                       Not every dog shows his love the way Otto does!

Lesson Number 1: Never Give Up

Well, to get more followers I am suppose to blog everyday.  That may be a little hard to do, but I will make an effort to blog more often. 
So I will start a... Lessons in Life my Dogs have Taught Me.  I have read many dog stories by various authors.  "Marley" of course was very enjoyable to read, because either my dogs performed the same feats of distruction as he did, or made me realize my dogs weren't as bad.  Then "10 Secrets my Dog Taught Me" by Carlo De Vito, was enjoyable mainly because it was about a German Short haired Pointer, and I was curious how our Otto comparted to Mr De Vito's Exley.  What I learned was Otto is FAR more needy, and probably not your average GSH Pointer.  Exley loved the water, Otto hates the water.  Exley was left alone when Mr DeVito went to work, Otto cried and whinned whenever he was left alone.  Anyway, what does this have to do with Lessons in Life?  Otto has taught me to Never Give Up.  He can be most annoying at times, but that determination is to be envied by anyone who has folded under pressure.  Otto is a loyal friend with very expression-filled eyes and even though he has caused so many problems, we accept him for who he is.  He knows what he likes and what he doesn't.  Keep him away from water, vacuum cleaners and thunder storms.  Allow him to run every day, make sure his best friends Bo and Bandit are always near by, and give him a reason to point once in a while.  Most important always leave a little space next to yourself on the couch, so he can flop down, lean next to you, and feel secure!

A Walk

So, since today's weather was just so perfect, I decided to walk the three dogs together.  I have commented in the past that this has not always turned out to be a good decision but I was up for the challenge.  If it worked, maybe it could become a regular thing and a nice way to give the dogs a little extra exercise.
The first few steps were clumsy, with the dogs trying to position themselves.  A little pulling was finally replaced with a nice walking pace.  Since Bandit is older, I figured we would just go down the street and back. 
Everything was working out fine as we approached the street corner but something caught got my attention.  The husky that lives at the house on the corner was slowly creeping towards us.  I thought, please dogs keep your eyes forward, don't look around, if we can get to the corner instead of turning around and going back home, we will turn left and go around and through the park.  The husky was getting closer, almost stalking us and so quiet.  Three more steps and we would turn and be clear but then Bandit decided to turn his head to the right and that was it..he stopped and barked.  Bo and Otto, turned and now I had my hands full.  Luckily this husky did not cross his electric fense, he let out this little howl and that was it.. but my three dogs were straining towards him.  Otto and Bandit barking and Bo jumping, not sure what to do.  I stood fast, got control, turned and yanked on them to continue walking.   A car stopped and a nice man got out asking if I needed any help.  "No thank you, they are too excited, I can handle it", I said to him.  (I just was not sure what a stranger coming up to us would register in their brains...I think Bo and Bandit would be fine, but Otto would need to protect me against a stranger and I didn't need that).  "Bo, Otto, Bandit, Stop, come on, let's go," I commanded in my alpha-dog voice and we turned and walked back towards our home. 

Home at last!  I can reflect on this outting on the positive side.....everything worked out fine, I controlled the dogs and I got a good workout as well...or think negatively...what if....no...let's stay positive and just smile!

The Sleepover

The backpack was packed, instructions were given to behave and don't be afraid, then good byes were said.  This sounds like any child going on their first sleepover, but this was just a little different.  This was Bogart going on a sleepover at Heather and Scott's apartment.  Heather and Scott wanted a puppy this year but they just moved into their apartment and as it turned out, their summer was loaded with activities.  A puppy would most likely have to wait until next summer but in the meantime, to see what it would be like to have a dog, they asked if Bo could come spend some time with them.  So, Saturday later in the afternoon, they came and picked up Bo.  His packback contained his bowl, leash, harness, a flip chip, bag of small bones, and food for the next day.  Off they went.
Their time together started with a relatively long walk to Blockbuster, which really tired out Bo.  When they got back to their place Bo needed to pant, really PANT, to cool off.  This was good exercise for him and he settled nicely into their routine.  The dog that lives downstairs from them barked whenever he heard Bo go in or out but Bogart behaved perfectly without any barking.  Bo probably took up a little too much space while sleeping on the bed during the night, but overall, he was very polite.  He woke up, a little too early for Heather so Scott fed him breakfast, took him out and then brought him back home.  A successful adventure.  Bo hopes he will be asked to sleep over again sometime.

North Lake

Our friends, the Smiths, have a house on North Lake that we have visited for many summers.  Last week, Heather wanted to practice swimming in the lake as training for the Tri that she will be participating in later this month.  I went along and decided to take Bo.  In the past there were many times we took all three dogs to their house for a little swimming exercise and cool off, but that requires A LOT of work, and with Heather already swimming I decided this time, one dog only.  Since Bo is My Dog, and I know, well I am pretty sure he will never run away from me and since he gets along with everyone and any dog he meets, I felt this would just be a wonderful outting and it was!  Bo was our first dog that Chose to jump into the water fromt he pier.  He is not like those dogs that run as fast as they can and almost fly into the water, going 15, 16, 17 feet.  No, he just goes to the end and flops in.  Then he swims towards shore, hops back onto the pier and does it again, and again, and again.

Bandit (who we nicknamed years ago Swim Swimmy) also loves the water but always needs a little push to get him off the pier.  He gets close but just can't quite commit to a jump.  Also, with Bandit being blind in one eye, he requires more watching to make sure he is heading in the right direction.  Plus, Bandit doesn't like other dogs unless he is personally introduced to them first.  Most of the houses on the lake have a dog, so having Bandit along means being aware of what is going on all around you.
Otto, now there is a strange dog.  Pointers are suppose to be great swimmers, due in part to their hunting abilities, but not our Otto.  His hind legs always go straight down in the water, and he strains to keep his head up above the water.  Then he flops both front legs up and down to propel himself where he wants to go.  He looks like he is drowning and its hard not to laugh.  Needlesstosay, he does not like the water and will not jump into the water on his own from the pier.  I am guilty of pushing him in, sorry Otto.  The most Otto will do on his own, is stand in the water and hop.  Otto will hop straight up out of the water, then of course goes back in, hop out, back in.  Otto loves car rides, endless runs and hunting, but the lake is not a favorite spot of his.
So, Heather finished her swim, followed it up with a half hour run and Bo and I chilled on deck, just enjoying the beautiful day and the wonderful view.

The Squirrel

Mr. Squirrel has been eating from the bird feeder outside our family room window and is not easily scared away. Otto has been showing outstanding examples of patience while watching Mr Squirrel munching away on sunflower seeds. This is symbolic of his hunting ability to freeze while focusing on his quarry. He is motionless as if its a game of cat and mouse or who will move first. But Mr Squirrel wins everytime because there is only so much one little German Shorthair pointer can take as he lunges at the window barking.

Dog Wash

I love summer, its so much easier to give the dogs a bath when you can do it outside. No clogged bathtub or sandy bottom to contend with. A bucket of soap, a couple towels and a hose. Each dog entered the dog wash today. For each its just a little different. Bogart..loves the water and the attention. He will stand as I cut his hair, soap him up and its so refreshing when he gets hosed by the cold water. He always seems to be smiling. Bandit, a little more effort is needed. Oh, he loves the water, he prefers swimming in it, but standing when he gets a trim..no, too much work. Rather lay on one side, then flip me over and cut the other. A little treat gets him to stand for the soap and rinse. Otto, well he isn't that fond of water, but since all the other dogs were getting so much attention he thought.."why not me". It takes a fraction of the time to give Otto a washdown. No fur trimming needed, a little soap, rinse with water from the hose..then Otto expression says.."too cold, too wet..get me out of here". Overall, three dogs go through the Dog Wash takes about a half hour..Bogart is dry in about one hour, Otto is dry in one minute and two hours later Bandit is still a wet dog with that nice damp dog smell. At least in the summer you can open the windows.

Happy Birthday Bo

Today was Bogart's Birhtday. Started out hot, so all the pups were tired..then noisey thunder made them all a little nervous...but Bo's cookie birthday treat had them all at attention. Happy 7th Birthday Bogart!

Can't Keep Otto Down

(continuing story of Otto)
Otto moves back to Chicago and does well in the new doggy daycare. Maybe the extra socializing with Bo and Bandit taught him something. I will not forget all the little "fun" thing he did in Wisconsin. We had fense that slid down between two boards along the back hallway, so it couldn't be pushed down or jumped over, thus keeping all the dogs in the hallway and laundry area. One day I came home to find Otto on the other side. Fence down but Otto on the other side. Next day we put up a video camera to figure out how he did it..did he climb over it..did one dog boost the other over the wall to escape. No, though not perfect quality when viewing the video, it appears Otto used his nose and pushed it under the bottom on the fence, raising it..and then when he could fit under, scooted under it and he was free. Such determination.
Another time when I was gone, Otto pushed open the door leading to the garage. The garage door was down and the door he just opened closed. He was now trapped in the garage which wasn't what he was planning. He continued to scratch the door, the frame and the drywall to no avail..thank goodness. I came home opened the garage door to an elated Otto, free at last!
Otto does a little more hunting, and a trip to Traverse City and then he gets sick. He is tired and has no appetite. He walks like he is stepping on egg shells. Leah takes him to the Chicago Vet and runs some tests. Otto is diagnosed with Blastomycosis. This is a fungal disease that infects both dogs and people. Can be rapidly fatal if not treated properly. Even with proper treatment some dogs never recover. Fungal organisms live in sandy soil near water. Hunting dogs are at greater risks along with younger dogs. Otto is just over one year old and appears had inhaled these spores. The spores travel down the airways of the lungs and infection develops. Skin lesions or lymph nodes can appear. People can not contact Blasto (as it will be called from here on) from dogs only from the soil itself.
The Vet wants to keep Otto overnight for more procedures. Kyle and Leah are emotinally drained. They leave Otto there and go home to wait for the news. Even when he is sick, Otto is Otto, and he is not happy about being left in a crate. It doesn't seem to matter to him that he is very sick, he cries, whines, barks, and the Vet calls Kyle and suggests maybe its best if they take him home afterall.
Otto has lost weight, and is very tired but he gets what he wants, to be home. But now what? Leah gets a special dog food, with low fat, and orders the first bottle of medicine. This is people medicine and Otto needs to have it squirted into his mouth two times a day. BTW, This bottle is not cheap. There is also pills that will take care of any infection. They are told to boil ground beef and serve him that as well. Leah takes off a couple days but Otto needs daily care and can't be left alone because he will cry, whine, bark, and disturb the neighbors. He can't attend doggy daycare because he has this disease.
I offer to take him again, come back to Wisconsin, this time its more of a hospice setting. Otto can get all the TLC he needs here.

So they pack him up and bring him to Wisconsin again. Otto arrives and has no interest in Bo or Bandit. He just sleeps and sleeps. He is to be on this medicine for 8 weeks. And each week, he improves. In a couple weeks he starts to be himself again, running, playing, looking on the countertops for anything to eat. But there are some changes. He doesn't mind going into his new larger cage when I have to go out, he walks in and makes himself comfortable on the quilts. He seems calmer now but he still loves to lie against or on top of Bo whenever he can. Eight weeks pass and Otto has survived and heads back home to Chicago again.

What's Next for Otto

Leah had found a doggie daycare for Otto for when she goes to work. They even had a pick up and take home service. This might sound like a perfect answer for a needy dog but it was not what Otto wanted. He did not like being put in a crate for the drive to daycare, and he did not really like being in a room full of dogs. He had a tendency to not socialize, he would stand at the top of the small slide, overlooking the area, but not joining in. Basically after a while, Leah and Kyle got the news that every parent dreads..Otto flunked out of doggy daycare. They did not feel it was a good setting for him.

What was next for Otto. A little study abroad, well actually how about coming to live in Wisconsin with Bandit and Bogart and Scott and myself. During this time we learned first hand just how determined Otto could be.
When I came home to find he had opened the pantry and emptied three shelves of food. He ate combinations of cereal, cookies, crackers, noodles, dog food, sugar, flour, hot cocoa mix, pudding, hard candy, chewy candy, just about everything that is stored in the pantry was now on the floor, and either empty or ripped open.
Bogart joined in on the feast but Bandit, knowing this was not good, was hiding upstairs in a bedroom staying out of trouble. That is how through try and error we found a way to lock the pantry doors by tying the handles together, loose enough to slip it over, but tight enough that a nose (or head) can not open it up.
Then Otto was put in a cage when I went out. The first time he was alone for a couple hours, he decided nothing could hold him and proceded to chew on the bars and move them apart. If I had been gone a few hours longer he may have at least gotten part of his body out. The bars were then reformed, tied for strength. We did not give up on the cage..made it more appealing, cushy quilt, a few extra treats and eventually Otto got used to going in when I was going out.
Along the way, he found other ways to get into trouble.
He found interesting things on a shelf..he ate all the dry fish food out of the container.
Learned to open my purse, pull out everything until he found gum or lifesavers. Once he used a chair to get up onto the top of the cage and then onto the countertop. Looked around for something good, but I had already learned that the countertop would now always be clean without any food on it. No bread, no avocados, no pretzels, nothing.
Inbetween keeping us on our toes, Otto got along great with Bo and Bandit.




He also loves to sit on the other dogs whenever he can. He also prefers to lie against or on a person..snuggle next to them..or as I like to say the Otto flop. It might be like security to him. He still missed Leah and Kyle terribly and about 6 months after coming to Wisconsin he went back to Chicago. Leah had found a new doggy daycare, and they were buying a new condo. Everything would be great from here on...or would it. (Next Can't keep a determined dog down)

Otto Part 2

Now Kyle, Leah and Otto are residents in Chicago. They enjoy taking Otto on walks around the city, visiting the dog parks and the dog beach. Otto pulls when on the leash and to teach him to walk better, Otto is enrolled in obedience classes. He, as expected, does not do well with the "owner out of sight" ritual since he doesnt like to be out of Leah's sight, but when he graduates he does win the "best trick award". Kyle puts a dog treat on his paw and he just stares at it until they say "ok". Then he eats the treat.
This ability to stare down anything must be a trait of a hunting dog..and yes a German shorthaired pointer is a hunting dog. Kyle finds a pheasant farm in Wisconsin and it's time to "teach" Otto to hunt pheasant. His brother Dan joins him and early one Saturday morning they are off. Most dogs arrive at the pheasant hunting farm in crates in the back of the car. Not Otto, he arrives nestled in Dan's lap in the front seat, munching on some tater tots. Gotta keep that strength up. Other dogs are barking, excited about their upcoming hunt. Otto, stretches and looks at the Kyle with the expression, now what do I do? But as I said earlier, Pointers are natural hunters..and it doesn't take long for Otto to track a pheasant and yes...Point. Future hunts would include Leah, Heather or Matt, all watching Otto do this thing. Siblings and dog..bonding.
Back in Chicago, a new faith was awaiting Otto, it was time for Otto to learn how to be alone. This was not on Otto's list of things to do, he definately is attached to Leah. But Leah had accepted a job offer and the next question is "Could Otto be left alone with no one home?" Simple answer it turns out was...no. He did not like to be left alone, he does this whin-cry-bark that is so annoying and sounds like he is lying somewhere dying. Next step, to avoid a ticket for disturbing the peace, Leah looks for a doggy day care. (next segment: Otto in daycare)

ALL ABOUT OTTO

Today Otto and I took a quick walk around the block. Nothing unusal happened but that in itself is unusal when something pertains to Otto. I should explain. Otto has faced a lot in the 5 short years he has been around. Talking about all Otto has faced will take a few posts..so lets start at the beginning.

A litter of German Shorthair pointers was born in Pennsyvania on April 2, 2005. Leah Hays picked out one from a group of pictures emailed to her, there was one that was a little more darker than the rest. That pup was then delivered to Kalamazoo, Michigan, where Leah meet up and took ownership of a dark brown with some white spots puppy. Otto Von Bismark, a fitting german name for a German shorthair. Leah took Otto to Traverse City, Michigan for a little bonding vacation.






From there he went to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where Kyle and Leah were going to live for a couple months. Sounds pretty tame and normal right..well not really. One of the things that Otto faced at the beginning was he had a protruding belly button which needed surgury to fix. He also had possible mange on the tip of his tail, but it turned out to be a bald spot. He received a ticket for walking off leash and by walking we mean stumbling because Otto's ears were Dumbo style. They seemed so long that he could almost step on them. Otto had one other problem, his bladder seemed to be very small. He peed all the time, anywhere and especially seemed to like to pee in the apartment Leah and Kyle rented that summer. He also did not like to be alone in the crate. Actually he did not like being alone anytime anywhere. When he was alone he whinned. Not a quiet can't hardly hear it whine. He is the master of the whine. So why not just leave him, won't he eventually stop..because no, he won't stop. He will whine for hours and then evenutally you give in because you can't take it any longer and he looks at you like he is saying...Thank goodness, what took you so long... The best way to put it is..Otto is needy. He needs to be with someone, as a puppy he preferred Leah over everyone.
Its now August and its time for another move. Kyle and Leah rent a condo in Chicago where Kyle will be working and Leah will be looking for employment. Leah, having visited TC again, rents a HUGE moving van, I mean HUGE, and her and Otto embrack on a road trip to Chicago. Heather and myself meet Kyle, Leah and OVB and help empty the van and move them into their first place together. Otto christens the third floor unit with a huge puddle of pee. Welcome home. (story to continue)