Cutest Puppy Award: Oso, the Survivor

On many levels, Oso is a survivor. 

He survived the harsh cold of being left motherless, in a cardboard box with all his siblings in downtown Los Angeles; outlived his brothers and sisters and persevered to win the Cutest Puppy Contest - despite . 

Times like this (no reader votes) an editor's got to do what an editor's got to do.

Meet Oso, a black lab who loves splashing in the pool on a sunny day, running around the yard and plopping into the grass or dirt to scratch his back and cheeks. He's very happy to receive the award, and to be alive, said owner Analily Park. 

"Oso would like to thank his family, his friends, and his neighbors 
(the Brooks family) who helped take nursing shifts every three hours for Oso and his siblings when they were only few hours old. 

"Probably, after being left in the cold for so long when a young pup, Oso's body learned to generate its own heat. That helped him be the only survivor from the litter, but he gets overheated very easily,'' she said.

The Parks and Oso miss Bella, an older Jindo rescued dog they lost a year ago after the dog's battle with diabetes. Bella acted as Oso's older sister, Park said, and taught him "who was boss,'' and "how to behave like a dog.'' Oso still looks for Bella around the yard, she said, after he finds one of her chewies or sniffs a spot where she used to keep her blanket. 

Lots of Nicknames

It's a good day for Oso when he slobbers an empty bone filled with peanut butter, a bone he licks long after the peanut butter disappears. The puppy loves to be called a varity of names: "Osito" (Spanish for little bear), "Oso Bucco" (named by the Parks' oldest son when he studied at the Culinary school), and "the Dog of Friendship" (named by their youngest son).

Park said Oso answers to anybody who displays affection and a good attitude toward him, and loves going to work with her husband once a week to lay down by his desk.  

"We appreciate that Oso has been picked for the Cutest Puppy Photo Contest, and we would like to [encourage] our community to keep up the good work with rescuing pets from the Humane Societies. They are sweet souls, waiting for a family to love,'' she said.