Izzy

May 17, 2007 — July 29, 2010

Izzy, aka Isabella, aka BooBoo, aka Cupcake, aka Isabella BooBoo Cupcake

Our Izzy was a very happy Bulldog who loved racing breakneck through the woods, chasing after squirrels, a deer, or even a jogger. She also scrambled crazily through our house after meals, rocketing toward the bedroom, hiding for a minute, barking, then running back to the dining room where we were eating. Should we get up to get seconds, Izzy would demand seconds as well. Izzy enjoyed her meals, and was especially fond of ice cream, pizza crusts, and lamb. However, she did not like everything. The one time we gave her a strawberry, she gummed it for a while, spit it out, and then sat on it.

She came to us from rescue, and had spent most of the first year of her life cooped up unwanted in a small space. The world was new to her when she came to live with us. She was afraid of the fan, the elevator and the ramp to get into the back of the car. However, once her Bulldog nature started shining through, Izzy became fearless. Poo-pooing the ramp as somewhat effete, she would either jump in the back by herself or put her front paws on the back bumper, and wait for me to lift her back paws to boost her into the car. She was amazed by the wind-scattered leaves that she saw her first autumn, and would chase after them happily. She also was awed by running water, and would stick her paws into it to see if she could stop its flow.

Izzy liked things a certain way, and if she saw something in her home that she wasn't expecting, like a package that had been delivered, she would bark angrily at it. She also protected our balcony from infiltrators, darting out there if she heard voices or the jingle of another dog's chain outside.

She loved prowling through tall liriope grass, occasionally throwing herself onto her back and wriggling around in a frenzy, snapping at the surrounding grasses. Izzy remembered everyone who ever gave her a treat and every place she stalked a squirrel and would always stop and look to see if either was likely to be available. She knew the mailman carried Beggin' Strips, and would race after his truck when she saw it. However, she would also scurry after a Fedex or UPS truck because those trucks look similar. She took great pleasure from her walks and would always try to steer us toward the Cathedral grounds or into the woods.

Izzy was an especially attractive Bulldog, who never tired of receiving compliments and pets from passers-by. Even to the end, she was turning heads, people yelling out of car windows "What a great looking dog!" She relished the attention.

We had plans to take her to the Outer Banks, to Maine, to anywhere we could take her. She had already been to Rehoboth Beach and Lewes, DE, where she enjoyed racing up the beach terrorizing horse-shoe crabs. I'm sure Izzy had plans of her own as well. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with lymphoma and did not respond to treatment.

Izzy was a force of nature who charmed everyone she met. She had boundless energy and spirit and provided us with much joy and love. We did our best to provide the same to her for the two years we shared. We will miss our Isabella BooBoo Cupcake terribly.

--Tim and Dianne