Kelly Ripa Shares Touching Update on Ailing 17-Year-Old Dog After ‘Extraordinary’ Night: ‘She Hasn’t Been Herself’
Kelly Ripa’s elderly dog, Chewie, had a good night!
On the Jan. 29 episode of Live with Kelly and Mark, Ripa shared an update on her family’s beloved dog, Chewie. Lately, 17-year-old Chewie’s health has been deteriorating, which Ripa has been heartbreakingly honest about on the morning show, but on Tuesday, the dog seemed her usual perky self, Ripa said.
“Last night, she did something extraordinary, which she hasn’t done in weeks,” Ripa said on the Jan. 29 show. “And it’s going to sound like not a big deal, but if you’re a pet owner, you know, you know.”
Kelly Ripa with her dog Chewie
She continued, “She lifted her own crotch — you understand what I’m saying, this is a massive thing — she has not done that in weeks. She started self-cleaning, and then she curled up next to me and cuddled and started doing her thing where she edges me off the bed little by little all night, so I wind up sort of falling off the bed. But I didn’t care because it had been so long that she acted like herself.”
Ripa’s husband and co-host, Mark Consuelos, added that he cherishes every mundane moment with Chewie, even her bathroom breaks, “because I know it’s fleeting. ”
According to her pet parents, Chewie has been acting less herself lately and is more lethargic, distant, and disoriented. So Ripa is thrilled to see the slightest positive change in her dog’s behavior, such as Chewie’s self-cleaning and the dog’s energy returning.
In March 2024, Ripa first discussed her dog’s health on the show, sharing that her mind was “back home with Chewie,” who had a bad day the day before.
Chewie, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos’ dog
“She walked into a wall yesterday; she fell over,” Ripa said. “It’s just one of those things, you know, when your dog starts to get old. It’s torture. It’s really torture. Because she can’t tell you.”
On Jan. 14, Ripa pondered how to deal with the impending grief of losing her dog. She grew emotional, discussing her frustration that Chewie couldn’t communicate with her human family about what she wanted or needed.
She recalled asking Chewie, “From one old girl to another, tell me what to do.”
