Izzy, the dog who is part cat

Awhile back, E said I should write about the pets. Half the time (especially during the biggest months of IM training) they are what help keep us sane. They are quite entertaining and help keep us in line with a daily schedule, regardless of what crazy things life and training throw our way. After all, there is no negotiating evening feedings or morning walks.

Each of our pets has a very unique personality, which makes them very special to us. And they each deserve their own separate blog posts. Sammy cat would have it no other way. Despite sharing the dog's water dish on a daily basis (she will drink out of few other things) and stealing the dog's beds whenever she feels like it, she is THE CAT and should not have to share a blog post with the dog. Those of you with cats may understand.

So today's blog is about Izzy the dog. Sammy-cat's blog will just have to wait.

We adopted Izzy from the Humane Shelter shortly after buying our first house and moving out of Student Housing at the University (no pets allowed for renters). A few days before being put up for adoption, the veterinary staff at the shelter operated on Izzy to spay her and remove her left eye. As a stray, we have no idea of what her history was, why or how her eye got injured, or even really what prompted the vets to remove the eye rather than leaving it in and leaving her blind in that eye. The only idea we have is that she had a ruptured cornea, and that she was deemed adoptable, so they operated to remove the eye while she was anesthetized to be spayed.

We hardly ever remember that the eye is even gone!

She moves and behaves as though she has full sight. She is a fast runner, good at chasing balls (but only will if some of her dinner is on the line), loves to play and wrestle with other dogs, and has become our active little companion on many adventures. In fact, when she cocks her head or makes other inquisitive facial expressions, her left eyebrow still mimics the right one, it is as though the eye is still there.

As a shelter dog and stray, we are not sure of her bloodlines, but guess she has a lot of German short-hair pointer, labrador retriever, and probably some border collie in her. She is black, about 45 lb, and more fit and trim than a lab, but stockier than a pointer. And she loves to run.

And run.

And run.

Her longest run with us was 2:45, at which point we set the mark at 2:30 for future runs. At 2:30 she still is going strong and having a blast, at 2:45.... not so much.

She is a hyper, fun loving dog. As she is aging, she is significantly mellowing out, but all of that changes the instant she sees a squirrel or rabbit. And prairie dogs...woah! Why do toy makers insist on having squeekers that sound just like a prairie dog? Many of our runs in Boulder Open Space take us right by oodles of prairie dog farms that have Izzy on high alert.

Izzy hates baths, would rather hold it than go out to potty in the rain, but loves to swim.

She has been very trainable, which we think is due to her being a mix of working/hunting breeds. She NEEDS something to do, and learning a new trick is high on her list of favorite things (along with raw hide bones to chew on and other dogs to play with). We have not been learning any new tricks lately, but to date, she knows how to go to her bed, sit, lay stand, shake, crawl, spin, roll over, touch, leave it, stay (wait, actually), speak, and a few other basic training commands.

Izzy is also an individual. It may be because of her time as a stray when she was just a pup, but she is often content being off on her own, snoozing, watching out the window, lounging out in the back yard, sitting on her pillow. Rarely does she "follow you around like a puppy dog." The exceptions are in the morning before her walk or run or at dinner time before she is fed.

And, at times, she acts kind of like a cat. For a while a skin irritation caused a lot of licking and grooming, much like a cat. She chases spiders. Today on our morning, pre-swim walk, she instantly turned left, jumped straight up in the air, and launched herself into the long grass, much like a cat. And her solidarity is also quite cat-like. This may explain why she and Sammy get along so well.

All in all, she is an excellent companion. The parting shot is of her and me, gathering firewood together on my parent's Lake Superior beach. What a good dog! In fact, her longish nick name is "Izzy the one-eye wonder dog," I think it fits!

-A