07/31/2022
Celebration of Osoâs life: Oso âJackie Oâ Arthur was born on November 16th, 2008. His mother was a smaller Bernese Mountain dog (90 lbs) and his father was a large, muscular impressive Golden Retriever. His litter was born in a barn on a farm in Front Royal, Virginia in the beautiful Shenandoah Mountains. The breeder wanted to share her love for Bernese with the world, but she hated AKC âbreedingâ which had left the breed with a life span of 6-8 years. She spent 10 years getting approval to breed only to violate her agreement and breed the Bernese with a very strong line of champion golden retrievers - Golden Mountain Dogs. She wanted to keep breeding the golden mountain dogs back into the Bernese line until their tri-color returned. This is partly why I believe Oso had the genetics to make it to nearly 14 years old as a giant breed dog which is beyond rare (also starting him as a puppy on grain free diet, with raw meat supplementation, eating left over superfood smoothies and veggies and walks daily).
Iâll never forget that day we picked him up and brought him home. He was truly the pick of the litter, being the most active, alert and interested of his siblings and the first one to leave. Oso was in the middle in terms of size of his litter. I often wondered how big his larger brothers became if Oso made it past 120 lbs. He was a character from day 1. His first night he slept with his head buried in my shoe and the next began his life long enjoyment of sucking on his blanket (blanky), if I had one regret, I think giant breed dogs might need to stay with their mother nursing for a bit longer than the standard 8 weeks.
Oso was a born traveler and loved it, seeing some of the most beautiful places coast to coast in the US. In 2009 Oso left behind life in the big city of Bethesda / DC area and relocated to a farm in Missouri where he lived for 1 year before moving to Eugene, OR. He also spent time in the Bay Area, Las Vegas and even living the high life 1 block off the beach in Encinitas, CA. But his heart found a home in 2015 in Mt Shasta, CA and this is where he would end up living the remainder of his life exploring the pristine rivers, lakes and forests of Northern California.
Oso could be defined as a love extrovert. He loved everyone all the time and had no shame in showing everyone he passed by in this life whether it be by his tail wagging, eyes shining or mouth smiling that he was genuinely happy to meet them. He was extraordinarily nimble and kind with children and elderly and especially loving to cats that would accept his interest. His supreme confidence in himself occasionally brought jealousy from other large males, interestingly it was usually from Goldens and Bernese that gave him slack. But he was always first to avoid violence, instead turning the other cheek (unless severely attacked where he would quickly show his immense strength and intensity to stop the fight which usually quickly ended with him standing over the dog growling with the dog, eyes wide, on its back wondering what just happened. Like a boxer he used his arms, Oso knew how to grab a dog by squeezing them in between his giant arms and upper torso and throwing them to the ground. I have never seen it before or since - looked like a Sumo wrestling move.
Oso really loved the social aspect to dog parks and was lucky to go to dozens, but it was always funny to watch him snub and run past the dog and go straight to the human to share his affection first and then meet the dog second. He loved to run the agility courses and was so coordinated and good at it. Most all dogs looked up to him in reverence at this giant black hairy specimen with such power, but wouldnât hurt a flea. A true gentle giant.
Famous Oso Stories:
One day while on a walk in Eugene, Oso very gently grabbed a cat in his mouth off a front porch and brought it to me and dropped in front of me on the sidewalk looking in my eyes as if to say, can we take it home Dad? The cat was completely unharmed and I put back on the porch explaining to Oso to not take things that donât belong to him, especially living things. đ
Oso went thru a short phase during my divorce in 2011 where he didnât like UPS / Fed Ex drivers (completely out of character and bizarre) and would chase them up into their vehicles. **Not going to dive too deep into that one.
Oso only bit one person. A drunk woman charging down the sidewalk who fell on him while he was sleeping deeply. It wasnât severe but did puncture her hand.
Oso was a powerful chief of security. He once stood on his hind legs and put and held a man against the wall for charging into a friends house too abruptly.
In 2015, during a animal psychic session, he reported to the intuitive that he was 100% sure he would live a long life - doubling his age of 6 1/2 at the time (which he surpassed - 13 2/3 ) and that he had always secretly wanted to have his own furry friend to take care of, possibly a pug. Sadly had to tell no on a second dog, one was enough to brush and wash and dryâŚ)
Shaman dog. I was once told that dogs can either be born with black spots on their tongue or they can, in rarer circumstances, develop them through the course of their of their lives like Oso did. The latter are known to be âShaman dogsâ that are adept at healing both humans and other animals. I personally witnessed his calming, grounding presence positively impact countless humans and dogs he met that had anxiety.
Oso loved to sit in the same spot in his yard - front and center of the chain link gate which was just 20 ft from the sidewalk where he could engage the passer byes by wagging his tail with such force to entice walkers to come over to the gate and pet him and say hi. Itâs entirely possible that he had met more people in town than I have, as people would often come up to me on a walk in town with him and say âoh, Iâve met your dog, he is so sweet.â
Just a year before he died, a bear entered my yard one night and was destroying my coolers on my back porch, though he couldnât run as fast as he used to, he tore out of the house, scared the bear half to death and chased him up a tree. He still had it even towards the end.
Oso never met a stranger. His world renowned spooning could have earned him an honorary PHD from Cuddle Puddle University. He could lean, hug, nudgle, kiss and cuddle like God had personally custom tailored him for the job. His humility to was second to none, he dished out kisses to faces of homeless men and women across the country as if he had been put here to reinforce Jesusâ noble teaching of washing the beggars feet. He touched all he came in contact with, but for the select few people that Oso had a chance to truly fall in love with, he would give everything and his love added much beauty to their lives. You all know who you are. One that stands out is Rosey and Kiri where he would frequently request sleep overs at their house by walking them out to their car and jumping in.
Oso walked me almost everyday of his life. This unrelenting passion for spending time outdoors in nature is what best defined Oso. The consistency and dedication must have come from his stricter Swiss side. Whether it was walking, hiking or swimming he found a level of enjoyment that reached beyond peak bliss. I often said he was more comfortable in water than on land as he never wanted a swimming session to end. But he loved the rivers, streams, waterfalls, lakes and forests equally. It was amazing to watch him climb to the top of a mountain and just relax and sit in a peaceful meditation and soak up the view with no hurry to head down. On the way back I would hand him a stick he would take back to car - having a sense of duty to bring that stick home like his life depended on it. More than one friend said to me, I think Oso is smarter and kinder than many humans walking the earth.
In India, a spiritual teacher once told me large breed dogs have the opportunity to reincarnate as human babies. Oso appeared to me to put in the work in his lifetime to achieve this goal. And what a beautiful human soul he will be. The privilege to be his caretaker is the most powerful gift that I could have ever been given in a hundred lifetimes. What did I ever do to deserve such a beautiful spirit dancing into my life will forever be a mystery - to wake me up every morning with a happy, panting smile asking: where are we going today Dad, lets get up and go. My stories of admiration for this dog are endless and yet the many who he touched could add even more. Thank you Oso for your great poise and regal-ness, your kindness you exemplified in your life and most of all the unconditional love you shared and taught to me. I will forever carry it with me.
Oso graduated with flying colors and passed away very peacefully inside his home on July 29th, 2022 at high noon, one day after the new moon with his grandma and dad supporting him with deep love and affection by his side in his final days. Dragonflies (good omen) were present the days preceding his death as well a group of local Blue Jays that gathered at his big tree at the exact time of his passing to sing him away. He died with the same great dignity that he lived his life. It was a powerful experience to hold his hand while he crossed over the rainbow bridge. Oso was more than a dog to me that I owned, he was a sovereign being with his own wants and desires. What a long, strange trip it was and what a pleasure it was to Ride the Oso train. I felt like I was a handler for a celebrity, his personality was that magnanimous.
Oso is survived by his daddy Logynn, his Grandma Victoria and fur-cousin Alfie, his aunt Ashley and Uncle Dan and their fur-cousins Jack and Pepper and the newest member of the family, baby Isla, who he didnât get to meet but I know he is watching over her from doggy heaven. In the coming days my website will host thousand of incredible photos and videos of his extraordinary life. https://josharthur.com/oso
