Culture

Meet Big Poppa, The Sad Bulldog Stuck In Quarantine Who Has Broken The Internet’s Heart

"Not being dramatic but I would literally die for Big Poppa."

by Michelle Rennex  23 April 2020
big poppa sad dog quarantine

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In just 24 hours, a photo of Rashida Ellis’ bulldog, Big Poppa, received over half a million likes on Twitter.

The Atlanta-based costume designer noticed her three-year-old bulldog — otherwise known as Pop — looking sadder than usual, so she snapped a pic and uploaded it to social media.

“Big Poppa has been so sad today, I think he [misses] playing with the kids in the building,” Rashida tweeted. “He just watches them from the patio.”

Hunched over, looking absolutely defeated as his wrinkles engulfed his face, the photo of Big Poppa went viral straight away.

People just couldn’t handle what coronavirus had done to the innocent bulldog, and even celebrities weighed in on the heart-crushing photo with sweet messages for the sad pup.

Speaking to BuzzFeed News, Rashida explained that Big Poppa isn’t used to being away from people for such a long period of time. A fan of the company of others, Rashida caught Pop staring down at some of his young neighbours playing at the courtyard below on Tuesday afternoon.

“He kept making noises to get their attention, but we’re six stories up and they can’t hear him,” Rashida told BuzzFeed News. “I was like, ‘Oh my god, he’s really sad’.”

But despite her best efforts at cheering Big Poppa up, Rashida explained that the love her bulldog has for children cannot be replicated.

“He loves children more than anything and not being able to play with them daily but [being able to] see them… I think it’s taking a toll on him,” she tweeted. “He loves children, and then other dogs and then adults. In that order.”

After the image started circulating online, people begun sharing their plans to make Big Poppa smile again — from finding cures to COVID-19, to practicing safe social distancing to flatten the curve, all the way to sacrificially contracting the virus to somehow give the bulldog his freedom back.

As we all stay home and wait for coronavirus to pass, we can remincise on happier times in Big Poppa’s life through his Instagram page. Until then, do your part to flatten the curve by staying home so that Big Poppa can go back to playing with his friends sooner rather than later.

Junkee has reached out to Rashida Ellis for a much-needed update on how Pop is feeling now.