When Lia Bellomy was 5 years old, her family decided they were ready for a dog. Not just any pooch would do, though. Lia had a skin condition that could be aggravated by environmental allergens like pet dander. After careful consideration, the family settled on a standard poodle, one of a handful of hypoallergenic breeds. Lia planned to call the new puppy Jasmine.
There was just one problem. When the family arrived at the kennel, it was clear the female poodle they had in mind was not the right dog for Lia. The energetic animal quickly overwhelmed the little girl, knocking her to the ground. Lia's father asked to see a male poodle. He had heard they had a gentler disposition.
"When that dog came out, it was like he and Lia were meant to be, just a match made in heaven," says Ron Bellomy. He was delighted to watch the puppy attentively follow his daughter around the kennel grounds. Lia did some quick thinking and declared a name change was all they needed: Jasmine became Jazzman (Jazz or Jazzy, for short), and the dog became a beloved family fixture from that day forward.
Now seven years old, Jazzy has been winning hearts over ever since, including the crowd at the Radish Healthy Living Fair, where he was named the 2010 Pet of the Year by popular applause. He was not new to the stage, having entered the contest last year. Neither was he new to the Freight House Farmers' Market, where he can regularly be spotted walking with Lia or Ron.
"Everybody at the farmers' market loves Jazz," says Ron, grinning. "People know his name who don't know mine."
Indeed, you'd be hard pressed not to spot the friendly black pooch ambling through the farmers' market on Saturdays. Because poodles have hair instead of fur, it is possible to "cord" their coats. As a result, Jazzy has a coat that looks distinctly dreadlocked, his long black cords hanging nearly to the ground.
Don't be fooled, though. The corded coat may look cumbersome, but Jazzy is a fleet-footed dog. Part of his healthy lifestyle includes regular runs in Davenport's LeClaire Park. He also makes daily visits to an off-leash dog park, where he can use his four years of agility training to nimbly run through tunnels, weave between poles and jump over obstacles.
Jazzy is also an enthusiastic swimmer. Lia Bellomy, now 12, and her father enjoy spending time boating and fishing along the Mississippi. When they go out on the water, Jazzy dives in, swimming alongside the boat with all his cords floating at the surface. Eventually his coat becomes saturated and the cords sink. When that happens, Jazzy comes back aboard the boat and watches over the family from the deck, his wet coat keeping him cool for hours.
To maintain Jazzy's health, Ron feeds him a dog food blend made of real chicken and grains with added vitamin E and selenium to support his immune system. The blend contains omega-6 fatty acids for a healthy coat, too. In addition, Jazzy is given a daily glucosamine chondroitin supplement to protect his joints and skeletal system.
"And he drinks a lot of water—a lot!" says Lia, who shares responsibility for Jazzy's care. This includes helping out with grooming, which is not as tough as it may appear. His corded coat is pretty tidy. All that is need for upkeep is to keep the cords separated as they grow out, a simple process of pulling them apart.
In addition to his regular visits to the farmers' market, Jazzy is also a popular visitor at nursing homes, where he has accompanied Ron to visit his father since Jazzy was two. Although he has no training as a therapy dog, Jazzy has what Ron describes as a "natural ability to spark joy" in both residents and staff members, who enjoy interacting with him.
"When he comes through the door, they (the nursing home residents) just come alive to see him. It's good for him, and good for them, and good for me," says Ron. Jazzy, he says, is a genuine comfort to himself and his father on these visits and always gives them something to talk about.
"There's pretty much nothing not to like about Jazzy," Lia explains. "He's so good and so loyal."
Part of what attracts people to Jazzy is his gentle nature, which extends to other members of the animal kingdom as well. He shares his living space with three cats--Memphis, Tuxedo and Indigo—and they all live together peaceably. There is also a bird, Buddy, who once accidentally fluttered from his open cage straight down into Jazzy's mouth.
"I said 'Jazzy, freeze!' and he did," says Ron. The Bellomys were able to retrieve Buddy from Jazzy's mouth wholly unharmed. On other occasions, Jazzy has brought Ron two field mice and one rabbit, all alive, held gingerly in his mouth.
"He has what they call a 'soft mouth,'" says Bellomy, "and a soft heart."
When he's not strolling through the farmers' market, running obstacles at the bark park, making social calls at the nursing home or appearing on our cover, Jazzy can be found at Riverbend Antiques in Davenport, where he serves as official greeter. Bellomy describes the shop, which he owns, as one of the original recycling stations. "For decades we've been finding new homes for old items instead of letting them get tossed out," he explains with a grin.
Jazzy, he says, is "as popular as anything we sell. Sometimes people come just to see him."
