In this paper the initial value problem and global properties of solutions are studied for the scalar second order ODE: $ (|u'|^{l}u')' + c|u'|^{\alpha}u' + d|u|^\beta u=0$, where $\alpha,\beta,l,c, d$ are positive constants. In particular, existence, uniqueness and regularity as well as optimal decay rates of solutions to 0 are obtained depending on the various parameters, and the oscillatory or non-oscillatory behavior is elucidated.