Jon Stewart sharing the grief of losing his dog Dipper will make you ugly-cry

Jon Stewart recently returned to The Daily Show to serve as host each week on Mondays, and this past Monday, he closed the show by paying tribute to his family dog, Dipper, who had passed away the day before. Stewart fought back tears as he discussed Dipper’s adoption, touching the hearts of anyone who has ever loved and lost a family pet.

He began by sharing that 12 or 13 years ago, his kids wanted to “raise a little money” in support of Animal Haven, a New York City rescue organization. At the time, his kids were “little,” and they had “baked a couple of cupcakes and rolled on down to Animal Haven,” where they sold the cupcakes on the street.

“So as a little extra incentive, they brought out this 1-ish-year-old brindle pit bull who—” Stewart paused, choking back tears, “[had been] hit by a car in Brooklyn and lost his right leg.”

Jokingly placing a tissue box on the table, he continued, “It was the perfect idea; they put the dog in my lap. And we left that day feeling really good that we’d helped this great organization.” 

“And we also left with this 1-ish-year-old brindle pit bull. We called him Dipper, and in a world of good boys, he was the best,” he added.

Stewart shared that Dipper used to wait for him every single day backstage at The Daily Show, adding, “part of the “OG Daily Show dog crew” along with a bunch of other beloved staffers’ pets. 

Dipper “met actors and authors and presidents and kings. And he did what the Taliban could not do, which is put a scare on Malala Yousafzai,” he jokingly added, sharing a short clip of Yousafzai mildly frightened upon seeing Dipper backstage.

Of Dipper’s passing, Stewart said, “He was ready. He was tired, but I wasn’t.”

“And the family, we were all together,” he continued. “Thank goodness we were all with him. But boy, my wish for you is one day you find that dog, that one dog that just is the best.”

Stewart ended by sharing a clip of Dipper playing fetch happily in the snow, ensuring not a single dry eye to be found anywhere. Of course, any pet parent will immediately feel his sadness—pets are an irreplaceable part of any family they join, and not enough people talk about how hard it is to lose them. They’re never with us long enough, because how could they be?

It’s clear that Stewart was an amazing dog dad to sweet Dipper. Wishing his family all the love as they remember the good times with their goodest good boy.