Country music icon Miranda Lambert shared heartbreaking news with fans: Her beloved rescue dog, Cher, crossed the rainbow bridge Sunday.
Cher, a spirited Chihuahua full of attitude and energy, gave Lambert 15 years of unconditional love. “If you’ve ever had a chi chi, you know what I mean,” Lambert wrote in her emotional Instagram tribute. She adopted Cher from a shelter in 2010 when the pup was just 10 weeks old. “I put her in my overalls pocket at the shelter and that was it!”
Cher lived a life as glamorous as her mom’s. Her first big trip was to the ACM Awards in Las Vegas, where Lambert’s stylist matched her dress to Cher’s so the pup could walk the red carpet. Lambert even won that year, and Cher confidently joined her in the press room “like she had been doing it her whole life.”
From that moment on, Cher was a constant companion, traveling on every one of Lambert’s tours. “Thank you to her sweet soul for all the road miles she traveled,” Lambert wrote.
Lambert reflected on her journey as a rescue dog mom: She was caring for nine rescue dogs when she met her hunky hubby, Brendan McLoughlin — a Staten Island native, former model and NYPD police officer — seven years ago. Now, the couple is down to one. The last photo in her Instagram post shows Bellamy and Cher together.
“We sure are ready for a break from the heartbreak, y’all, but they are worth every tear we have cried. Animals bring so much joy, but I sure do wish dog years didn’t go by so fast. Rescues forever.”