12 Stars Who Rescued Their Dogs in Surprising WaysKelli Bender,
Kelly Ripa with her dog Chewie; Chris Evans and his dog Dodger.Credit: Courtesy Live with Kelly and Ryan; Chris Evans/Instagram
Several stars have been vocal about rescuing their dogs and have shared their adoption stories
Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos rescued Javi after meeting him during an adoption segment on their daytime show
Chris Evans and Gerard Butler found their pups while filming movies
Kelly Ripa, Mark Consuelos and Chris Evans are just a few of the A-listers who have opened their homes and hearts to rescue dogs.
The Live with Kelly and Mark stars adopted their second rescue dog, Javi, after meeting him during an adoption segment in October 2026 — the same scenario that led to their first rescue, Lena, five years earlier. Evans also met his “sweetheart” pup, Dodger, at work while filming a scene for his 2017 movie Gifted at a kennel.
“I foolishly walked in and I thought, ‘Are these actor dogs or are these real up for adoption dogs?’ ” he told PEOPLE in April 2017. “And sure enough they were, so I was walking up and down the aisles and saw this one dude and he didn’t belong there.”
Ripa, Consuelos and Evans are far from the only stars with heartwarming adoption stories. Here are 12 celebrities who have adopted rescue dogs and the special circumstances that brought them together.
01 of 11
Josh Hutcherson
Josh Hutcherson with his dogs Driver and ManchiCredit: Josh Hutcherson/Instagram
Josh Hutcherson not only rescued his dog Driver, but he nursed him back to health.
The actor told PEOPLE that the 8-week-old pup was “left for dead” and had a broken leg when he was found.
A few years later, Hutcherson decided Driver needed a friend.
“A woman was fostering a whole litter of pit bull puppies that had been abandoned, and they all had pneumonia and all kinds of illnesses,” Hutcherson told PEOPLE in August 2026.
The actor continued, “I went to meet all of them, and Manchi was the runt of the litter, just a weird little strange dog. And I thought he was adorable and really special.”
02 of 11
Glen Powell
Glen Powell with his dog Brisket in 2024Credit: Presley Ann/Getty
While filming Twisters in 2023, Glen Powell came across a photo of a small white rescue puppy on a nonprofit’s Instagram account.
He later told Voguethat he “was very desperate” to adopt the dog and made a video to plea his case.
“I called anyone this adoption place I followed on Instagram,” the actor recalled in the August 2024 interview.
Thankfully, his efforts worked and he took home that small white rescue puppy and named him Brisket.
03 of 11
John TravoltaJohn Travolta with his dog PeanutCredit: John Travolta/Instagram
Peanut found her forever family after making an appearance at the 2022 Academy Awards, where Jamie Lee Curtis brought her on stage to honor the late Betty White.
The cute pup caught the attention of John Travolta and his then-13-year-old son Benjamin, and they adopted her later that evening.
04 of 11
Kelly Ripa & Mark Consuelos
Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos with their dog Javi on ‘Live with Kelly and Mark’ in 2026Credit: Lorenzo Bevilaqua/Disney
Over a year after losing their beloved dog Chewie, Ripa and Consuelos brought home his lookalike after meeting him during a segment on their show.
Although Ripa had initially planned to adopt a dog resembling their other rescue, Lena, she believed Chewie had a hand in bringing their new pup into their lives.
“My beloved dog, who I will never get over and mourn for the rest of my life, sent this little dog here,” she said during an October 2025 episode of their show.
05 of 11
Justin Theroux
Justin Theroux and his dog, KumaCredit: Justin Theroux/Instagram
Justin Theroux’s Instagram is full of photos featuring his beloved rescue, Kuma, enjoying the changing seasons and different holidays, among other activities.
The actor adopted the pit bull — whose name means bear in Japanese — in 2018 after she was placed in a high-kill shelter in Texas following the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.
A nonprofit pulled Kuma before she could be euthanized and Theroux learned of her story while working with the dog rescue Austin Pets Alive!.
06 of 11
Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus and her dog, AngelCredit: Miley Cyrus/Instagram
In 2021, Miley Cyrus added a new furry friend to her family: a pit bull mix named Angel.
The singer wrote in an emotional post that the pup slept “on concrete in a shelter for 3 months” and that her late pit bull rescue, Mary Jane, was the one who brought them together.
“She is illuminated by the aura of the late and great Mary Jane,” Cyrus wrote of her beloved pup, who died in late 2020. “Long live love. It never dies.”
07 of 11
Chris Evans
Chris Evans and his dog DodgerCredit: Source: Chris Evans Twitter
The Avengers star met his pup while filming a scene at a shelter for his 2017 film Gifted.
Dodger was among the dogs living there, and Evans told PEOPLE at the time that he quickly “snagged him.”
Since then, the two have starred in commercials together.
08 of 11
Gus KenworthyGus Kenworthy and his dog Birdie.Credit: Gus Kenworthy/Instagram
Team USA skier Gus Kenworthy left the 2018 Winter Olympics with something cuter than a gold medal: a puppy named Birdie whom he rescued after visiting a dog meat farm in South Korea, per the Olympics.
It wasn’t the first time Kenworthy brought home a furry friend from the Olympics. In 2014, he rescued two puppies, Jake and Mishka, after finding them near the Olympic Village in Sochi, Russia.
Today, Kenworthy and Birdie continue to have adventures together as seen on his social media.
09 of 11
Gerard Butler
Gerard Butler and his dog ShuskaCredit: Gerard Butler/Instagram
While filming a movie in “the middle of nowhere” in Bulgaria, Gerard Butler met a stray dog who he described as “pretty ill.”
“[I] just immediately fell in love with her,” the actor said during a June 2025 appearance on Todayof his dog, Shuska.
He previously told Cineplex in August 2019 that his pup’s name came from an AD on the film’s set calling ‘Hey Shuska, Shuska’ to the dog.
“I thought, ‘That’s a great name for a dog,’ ” Butler recalled. “But I’ve since found out that Shuska actually means nothing. It’s kind of like, ‘Hey there, hey there.’ So my dog is called ‘hey there.’ ”
10 of 11
Chelsea Handler
Chelsea Handler and her dogsCredit: Chelsea Handler/Instagram
Chelsea Handler’s rescue pup Chunk was almost as famous as she was. After he died in 2018, the comedian added two more rescue Chows — the same breed as her late dog — to her family: Bernice and Bert.
Following Bert’s death in 2023, she adopted another rescue Chow named Doug whom she described as “FULL-BODIED” in a January 2024 Instagram post.
Bernice died months later, marking “the end of an era” for Handler.
11 of 11
Dan Levy
Dan Levy and his dog, RedmondCredit: Dan Levy Instagram
Schitt’s Creek star Dan Levy adopted his dog, Redmond, after he had been “mistreated and abandoned at an adoption fair in Los Angeles.”
The actor shared in an August 2019 Instagram post that finding the then-4-year-old canine “was the greatest thing that ever happened” to him.
Sadly, Levy shared in January 2022 that Redmond had died. “Heartbroken but grateful for every minute of the last ten years that I got to spend with him,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “I love you, my sweet boy.”
Source: Nature