Former street dog changes the channel

Meet Ozi, a California pup who loves to be the center of attention

Ozi was living as a street dog prior to finding his forever home with Nationwide members Katie S. and Ricky J. “When we got him, he definitely looked like a street dog,” Katie remembers. “He was super shaggy and dirty. I don't know that he'd ever worn a collar before, because it took him a minute to get used to.”

However, the connection was undeniable. “It was pretty instant for me, having him be a part of our family,” she adds.

Ricky, on the other hand, needed to warm up a bit. “It took a while for me to get used to all the attention required by Ozi,” he says. “It wasn't so instant—but now, we can't live without each other.”

Katie adds, “At the end of the day, Ozi is like our spoiled only child.”

Adopting a new dog takes a lot of time, effort and training. Fortunately, the couple didn’t have to take on pet parenting alone. They get extra help from Katie’s sister, Emily, who was happy to step in as babysitter. “I like being the fun aunt,” she says.

When it comes to getting attention, Ozi knows how to push all the right buttons. However, one day when he got a hold of the remote control, he hit the panic button for his family and earned this Hambone Award nomination in the process.

What happened?

Emily was babysitting Ozi while both Katie and Ricky were out of town for separate events. She ran out for a quick errand, but upon returning she realized Ozi had been doing some channel surfing while she was away.

Katie remembers, “Emily texted me and said, ‘Ozi chewed up the remote’ and she sent me a picture—he had taken off the back of the remote for the battery holder and chewed it up into like 100 pieces.”

What at first seemed like a small mishap turned scary when they found that Ozi managed to chew up one of the batteries, and the other was nowhere to be seen. Katie says, "There were two batteries in the remote, so we were worried that he had swallowed it." Thinking quickly, Emily readied Ozi for a trip to the emergency veterinary clinic.

“[Emily] asked me if we wanted to go ahead and do the X-rays with Ozi. She said, ‘It's going to be $800 total for everything—and I was like, ‘Yes, say yes to everything,’” Katie remembers. “Let's just make sure everything is clear and do all the recommendations that the doctors want.”

As luck would have it, Ozi only chewed up the batteries as part of destroying the remote, but didn’t ingest anything (the missing battery was eventually found under the sofa, much to everyone’s relief). He was prescribed medicines to protect him against the effects of contact with hazardous electronic components, and Nationwide helped cover his eligible veterinary bills.

How Nationwide helped

Now, the remote stays out of reach, even though Ozi doesn't show interest in it anymore. And if anything surprising happens again, Katie, Ricky and Emily know they can rely on Nationwide pet insurance.

Ricky says, “[At first], I asked if pet insurance is even necessary and everybody I asked said, ‘Yes, get it.’” Now, everyone in Ozi’s family is glad they did.

Emily continues, “Pet insurance was super helpful in that emergency—it felt like we could say yes to everything. We could get access to all the information that we needed to know to make a decision about what was best for him.”

Katie adds, “I think it helps us be the best owners that we can be for Ozi, and not really give a second thought to what he needs medically. It's just really comforting to know you have some support in case the unexpected occurs.”