Kelly Ripa & Her Family Adopt a Rescue Dog Named Lena after It Was Featured on 'Live'
Kelly Ripa revealed that she and her family have recently adopted a rescue dog named Lena after the puppy was featured on "Live with Kelly and Ryan."
The Consuelos family has the cutest new member, and they couldn't be happier. On Tuesday's episode of "Live with Kelly and Ryan," Kelly Ripa shared the exciting news that her family had adopted a new dog.
The new canine named Lena is a rescue dog who was featured on the show on March 8. Telling the great news to her co-host Ryan Seacrest, Ripa gushed, "the Consueloses have made a decision to adopt Lena."
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As the audience screamed, Ripa shared a photo of her cuddling the Maltese/ Shih Tzu mix. Explaining her family's decision, the co-host shared that their primary concern was how their other dog Chewie would get along with the new pet.
[Ripa] explained that she settled for Lena because the dog's original name is Angelina.
To make sure Lena was compatible with the family, Ripa sought the help of her good friend and dog trainer Andrea Arden who gave them some tips. The dogs eventually got along more than Ripa even imagined.
She recalled a heartwarming moment between the two dogs one fateful night. Ripa explained that Lena was crying in her crate, so she snuck out to check on the canine, only to see the sweetest thing. In her words:
"Chewie was outside the [Lena's] crate, sitting next to her with their noses together."
It was confirmation for her that Chewie and Lena would indeed get along. Ripa revealed that everyone is getting along apart from her children, who believe that the pet should have a different name.
The "All My Children" alum explained that she settled for Lena because the dog's original name is Angelina, and she didn't want to change it radically. However, her kids prefer the pet is called Leia, as in Princess Leia.
They want to stick with the "Star Wars" name theme since they already have a Chewie. Last May, the 50-year-old celebrated Chewie's birthday with a heartwarming shoutout on social media.
Alongside an array of Chewie images, including one of her husband Mark Consuelos and her sons holding the pet during winter vacation, Ripa wrote Chewie was 91 human years young and still had most of her teeth.
Three months after Chewie's birthday, the show host marked National Dog Day with a throwback of Joaquin as a child holding the dog. The image sparked reactions, with fans gushing about how cute the pup has remained over the years.