Kaley Cuoco Reveals the Status of Her Dog Shirley

Actress Kaley Cuoco shocked fans on Nov. 24, 2024, when she made a surprise announcement about her beloved dog Shirley. The Big Bang Theory alum took to Instagram to talk to her fans about her pup who had noticeably been MIA on social media.

Cuoco was visibly upset as she told her followers about how she'd been forced to rehome Shirley after she and fiancé Tom Pelphrey moved in together following the birth of the pair's first daughter.

The sad story was a necessary one to share, according to the animal lover, especially because of Cuoco's work as an animal advocate and the founder of a pet care company.

Keep reading to learn more about what happened to Kaley Cuoco's dog Shirley, including why she ultimately had to be rehomed in order to keep everyone in Cuoco-Pelphrey's home safe.

According to her Instagram video, Cuoco was forced to find a new home for Shirley after the dog got into too many violent fights with Pelphrey's dog, Blue. 

Cuoco described how Pelphrey had brought Blue along when he moved across the country to live with her. Unfortunately, Blue and Shirley seemed unable to cohabitate, and instead got into frequent skirmishes that Cuoco described as "mega fights." 

In the end, Cuoco said her fear that someone would get seriously hurt was too big to ignore, and she decided to rehome the pooch with a pair of pet handlers. 

But that isn't the end of Shirley's story. While she may have thrived for a few years, she eventually got very sick, which is when Cuoco made the heartbreaking announcement that Shirley had been diagnosed with cancer. 

"They have loved her so so much, and it was an excruciating decision," a visibly upset Cuoco explained. "She got a very aggressive bone cancer that came on very quickly."

Shirley lived to be nearly 14, according to Cuoco, who said she felt compelled to share the tale. "And I just wanted to share her story and what we had to do."

Shirley wasn't the first painful loss for Cuoco. Her dog Norman — the inspiration for Oh Norman, a pet care company founded by Cuoco in honor of her late pup — died after being part of Cuoco's life for 14 years.

The senior dog died in 2021, according to an Instagram post shared by the actress. 

The post was deleted when Cuoco purged her Instagram after a split from her ex-husband, but People noted the details at the time of Norman's death, writing about how devastated Cuoco had been about the loss.

Norman had passed away just months after she and her then-husband Karl Cook had to say goodbye to another pet when their dog Petunia died.

It's unlikely that Shirley's loss will deter the animal lover from continuing to rescue dogs, especially since she was able to turn a tragic situation like the fighting dogs into something that worked for both dogs, so it's likely that we'll see a lot more about Cuoco's furry family in the future. But for now, it seems like she's going to take a little bit of time to mourn her dog, Shirley.