Happy Anniversary!!

Otto and me today, true love!

***Warning, for those of you who find Otto blogs tedious, you may want to skip this one, as it will be all about Otto....****

BECAUSE , today is our anniversary. Four years ago today I brought home a crazy little puppy dog who was scared of, well maybe not his own shadow, but certainly everyone else's. Otto was an internet hook up. I decided that I wanted a German Shepherd, so I was cruising for shepherds online. Then, as some point, after reading about health issues with pure bred shepherds, I nixed that idea and decided on a cute little dog named Berit (now Otto because one friend said the name Berit just made him think of Grin and Bear it).

For Otto and I, it was not love at first site. I decided to get him after our first meeting, but thought he was too small and really a little timid. He was missing a certain 'joie de vivre'. And naming him was a challenge, the poor guy remained nameless for several weeks, probably wondering about this crazy woman who called him something different every 24 hours or so. I'd say for the first 6 months to a year were a bit tough. Otto had a few quirks. He pretty much refused to leave the front room of the house except occasionally to venture to the kitchen to eat. Even then he frequently refused to eat his food or would run away with his tail down at the slightly provication. He peed a lot, and not always in the appropriate places - grass skirts, gym bags lying on playing fields, the Erbeck's Christmas tree, pet food stores, just to name a few. Occasionally he would take off. I'd put him out in the backyard and he'd jump the fence and wander for a few hours. Or I'd take out the recycling and he'd just run, usually with me running after him in my sock feet. And then there was the fact that he threw up every time he went for a ride in the car. One day we took a day trip to Whidbey Island and I swear the poor guy threw up all day long!

But, gradually he got better and more comfortable. And gradually I decided he had a personally and he was the perfect size. Slowly (or really it wasn't that slowly), we fell madly in love! Now I think he's the best dog ever!

And now an excuse for some Otto pictures. Here's some early photos:

Day One, not so sure.

Why does my life suck so bad! Toys and a cosy dog bed, YUCK, Scary!

Look how bad the back room use to look compared to now!!

That first year for Halloween, I tried to get Otto to go as a mummy, we settled for devil instead.


Happier days!