The Sweet Story Behind Rachael Ray's Dog Name

"Bella joined our family 1 year ago today," chatty food celebrity Rachael Ray wrote in an Instagram post on June 15, alongside a sweet photo of her female pit-bull-mix pup, Bella Boo Blue (via People). Ray and her husband, John Cusimano, adopted Bella Boo Blue last year both because they love dogs and because who could blame them after the enormous hole the May 20, 2020 death of their beloved pit bull, Isaboo, left in their hearts and their home (via Instagram)? So, first of all, we would just like to wish a happy belated #GotchaDay to Miss Bella Boo. Second of all, is it just us, or does it seem like Rachael Ray has a thing for the dog name, "Boo"?

But of course, it's not just us! Ray would probably be the first to admit that "Boo" is a common thread that runs through all of her favorite dog names. In fact, Bella Boo is not the second, but rather, the third dog that Rachael Ray has named some derivative of "Boo." It all started with Boo, a red-nosed pit bull who was, in Ray's own words, her "best girlfriend and official taste tester for 10 cookbooks" over the course of 11 years (via Modern Dog Magazine). But "Boo" is not the only common thread, and when you learn the heartwarming story behind Rachael Ray's current dog's name, you'll undoubtedly detect the sweet pattern. 

"You can never replace a loved one, but you can learn to love again," Rachael Ray wrote of her "girl, Boo," who died in 2004 at the age of 13. And as this statement would appear to foreshadow, Ray did soon bring another dog home to love and care for along with her husband, John Cusimano (via Modern Dog Magazine). Ray and Cusimano called the new dog, "Isaboo," which was a portmanteau of Ray's favorite name for a girl, Isabelle, and Ray's "favorite girl," "Boo." It was a match made in "who's a good girl!?" heaven, as it turned out. "She started taste-testing my newest cookbook right away. We have another really good eater here! Arf-O! (Yum-O!)"

And now that we think about it for a moment, the sweet story behind Rachael Ray's current dog's name, "Bella Boo Blue" becomes obvious. Although we haven't seen or heard Ray say this specifically, it kind of seems undeniable that the name "Bella Boo Blue" derives from the same exact inspiration as the name, "Isaboo." Instead of using the first syllable of the girl-name, "Isabelle," Ray ostensibly used the second. 

All that remains elusive now is where Ray got the name "Blue," and whether a fourth dog is in her future with a name that combines "Boo" with either "Isabelle" or "Blue."