Unconditional ly

Let me tell you about my best friend. His name is Otis Verdell and he came into my life on Labor Day weekend of 1999.

I'd moved into my townhouse just a few weeks prior and I had been planning on Otis' arrival for weeks. I hadn't told my parents because I really didn't care to hear their disapproval. I needed Otis.

My friend and I drove 2 hours to pick up Otis which was actually in my parent's home town so I was going to kill 3 birds with one stone: pick up Otis and see my 2 grandmothers. Perfect!

We pulled up to the farm and the owner greeted us. She went back in, then opened the door a few minutes later and out shot this black furry bundle of energy and I was hooked. That little Shih Tzu was mine! My friend played with him in the grass while I paid for him and my friend said, "I think this is the cutest puppy I have ever seen!" And he was.

We went to my maternal Grandma's house. Grandma S. had always been a dog lover and she just ate him up. We then went to my Grandma N's house. Grandma N had never been a dog fan; in fact she'd given away my Dad's dog when he was a kid. I was a little apprehensive for them to meet. We sat on her couch, Otis in my lap, and Grandma looked at him and said, "Even though I don't like dogs, he's pretty cute." (My Grandma's are AWESOME!)

That night, I put Otis in his kennel at bed time. It was awful! He cried and cried and I finally gave in and brought him to bed with me. I really hadn't planned on letting him sleep with me but I didn't want to wake the neighbors. Otis thought it was the best thing ever. He played for a while then settled in to sleep. My heart was melted.

Everyone fell in love with Otis. Even my parents got all mushy with him (we call them "Grammy" and "Papa" and he knows them by that). I would bring him up to the office and he'd make the rounds and greet everyone. Social little guy with a heart as big as Texas and a personality to match.

In September of 2004, Otis' and my world changed. One morning, I threw a toy for him and he seemed to walk right over it and couldn't find it. What the hell? I called the vet and got him in right away. My fears were confirmed; my Otis was blind. The vet said it was common in the breed and that it wasn't my fault. She said he'd actually been blind for some time as his retinas were completely detached. How could that be? If I said it was time for bed, he'd walk right to my bedroom and jump on the bed! She said he'd learned to acclimate himself to his surroundings. Now, we just had to make sure he didn't get glaucoma as it's very painful for dogs and it would mean removal of one or both eyes. I went home, held him and cried. He was dealing way better than I was!

Everything went along fine. He was on medication for his left eye as the pressures were higher and we were just taking precautions. He could make his way around my house and my parent's house just fine. He still loved car rides and hanging out in the backyard and playing with toys although if he whipped them around, he couldn't find them.

In the Fall of 2005, his left eye had to come out. It had gotten bad overnight and had to be removed. He was at the vet's a few days which were agonizing. When I picked him up, he looked so awful that I burst into tears in front of the vet. She kept reassuring me he was fine and I kept reassuring her that it was me not the dog. He looked so bad but he was so happy to be back with me I got over the shock and just held him and loved him.

2 weeks before Christmas 2007, I noticed that Otis' eye was looking very red so I took him back to the vet. She called me about an hour after I'd dropped him off and said it would be for the best if his right eye would be removed as she feared it would get infected and the infection could spread to his brain and kill him. I'd already resigned myself to the fact that he'd have to have it removed so I told her to just go ahead. He was in a little longer this time as the swelling took longer to go down so he went in on Monday and I picked him up on Friday. I told myself I would not cry when I saw him and I didn't. He was just so darn happy to hear my voice; his tail whipped around like crazy. I hugged him tightly and was holding back tears (he looked a lot worse this time!) and when the vet tech asked if I wanted to speak to the vet, my voice cracked as I said no and I buried my face in his fur and wept as I left the vet's office.

It was a rough Christmas but we got through it. Otis has bounced back so incredibly well. He actually plays a lot more than he did when he had just the one eye and it just doesn't phase him. He didn't need either eye anyway so what the heck?

Why is this little guy my best friend? He loves me because I'm me. He never cared what I looked like; he's just happy when I walk in the door at the end of the day. He wags his tail for me in the mornings and snuggles up against me at night because as long as I'm around, all is right in his world. Recently, I had a horrible bout of stomach flu and couldn't hardly get out of bed. He laid in bed with me all day. When he needed to go outside, it seemed like he went lightening fast because he knew I couldn't handle being on my feet for more than a few minutes. When I'm feeling sad, he snuggles into my lap and is just there for me. He doesn't care what I weigh or if I'm having a bad hair day; he just loves me and there's nothing better than unconditional love.