Happy Fourth Birthday to our Mad-but-Cute Izzy Dog!

The 19^th of November, 4 years ago, was the day our English Springer spaniel, Izzy, was born. Of course we didn’t know her then, as she didn’t come to live with us until the following January, after we drove all the way to Cumbria to meet her and bring her home. Having had three Cavalier King Charles spaniels previously – all of which stole, and then broke, our hearts having all died young of heart failure (a common breed problem we discovered at great emotional cost) – we set our sights on a breed a little more challenging … an English Springer spaniel.

Izzy, 8 weeks old

Izzy was such a bundle of action-packed fun from day 1. Hard work, yes. Cussed, yes. A right charmer, yes too. She was like a little whirlwind turning up at our house and spiralling the whole family into the chaos of new rules, new routines … and LOTS of walks! It was all great fun.

Izzy, 10 weeks old

And so every 19^th November since, on my children’s insistence, Izzy celebrates her birthday with a long walk, well-researched presents – and a meat pie! Yes it is ‘real’ meat in gravy, out of a tin from the local supermarket, covered in ready-to-roll pastry (a ‘once-a-year’ treat). Izzy seems to know it is the 19^th of November, because she refuses to leave the kitchen. She does a waggy dance when I take the oven dish out of the cupboard, and another when I give her the empty meat tin to lick out. She KNOWS it is her pie, and she follows everyone around the house in expectation of new toys.

Now Izzy, and our other Springer Jack (more of him in another post), have Pet Passports. They are well travelled pooches … Izzy has ‘done’ German Christmas markets, the Black Forest, most cities in Germany and France, has been driven all the way down to the Mediterranean in Spain, and up to the Baltic Sea in Latvia. She’s experienced doggy daycare in many places and in many languages. Anyway, where I’m getting to with this is that this summer we crossed the English Channel via the Eurotunnel (we always do as I don’t like leaving them alone in the car, as we would have to do if using the car ferry).

Izzy, Eurotunnel dog play area, Calais

On our way home, while queuing to check the dogs in at Pet Passport control, I always pick up a complimentary copy of Your Dog magazine. It’s a great read while waiting to be called to load into the Shuttle carriage. This year, my Nerf-crazy son spotted the ‘dream present’ for Izzy on one of the magazines’ product showcase pages – the Nerf Dog Tennis Ball Blaster, dog toy! Izzy LOVES balls … it’s an obsession that we have to control as she can drive you mad at times. So, on her 4^th birthday this year, Saturday 19^th November, Toby presented Izzy with her very own ball-shooting Nerf gun! This was promptly followed by the excitement of a long dog walk to try it out. Well, she loved it. My son loved it because, well, it was Nerf! And I loved it because I didn’t once have to beg Toby to come out for the walk! It was a win-win gift I have to say. My only criticism, if I had to have one, is that it should come with more than one tennis ball (clearly the makers have never had to get a ball-obsessed dog to ‘drop’ before!) And my son wishes it was a gun that you sat on your shoulder to shoot (I do worry about him at times …)

Izzy and Toby with Nerf Dog Tennis Ball Blaster

Reviews I read prior to buying the Nerf Dog Tennis Ball Blaster, dog toy were mixed, with several saying the gun didn’t shoot the ball very far. Well, to us, it was the perfect distance. We guessed at around 40 feet each time. It went far enough to get Izzy running, yet not so far as to lose sight of the ball, and her. It seems durable too – the gun moreso than the ball, which is already showing signs of wear and tear. I’ll invest in a few additional ones …

Izzy chasing the tennis ball from the Nerf Dog Tennis Ball Blaster

As for the birthday pie … it didn’t last long. Obviously it was cold when I put it on the floor, and it was a temporary struggle to get her to donate some of it to Jack, who was impatiently being held back (he had his birthday pie last month!)

Izzy eating her Birthday Pie!

So Happy Birthday Izzy dog! Here’s to many more birthday pies, and family adventures! x

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