Jennifer Garner Mourns Death of Beloved Dog and Pretend Cooking Show Co-Star Birdie

Jennifer Garner took to social media on Wednesday to mourn the death of “Birdie the Doggie,” her beloved golden retriever and frequent co-star on her YouTube series, Pretend Cooking Show.

“It seems nuts, given the world, to mourn a pet, but since we have shared Birdie with all of you, it only seems fair to let you know of her passing,” the Alias vet’s moving Instagram post began. “Birdie let us know on Thursday that she wasn’t feeling herself (a renowned foodie, Birdie never missed a meal). We were surprised to learn that, not only was she very ill, she was at the end of her life. The vet told us that dogs often hang on until their person comes home from college and we believe Birdie did just that, so that we could pet her soft ears together and thank her for being the world’s best dog.

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“Birdie loved to be read to, always found her way into a Pretend Cooking Show, and knew just how to give people what they needed,” Garner remembrance continued. “She lived a happy dog life and is now in the role she was born to play: angel girl. It’s a gift to love and be loved by such a creature as Birdie the Doggie.”

The comments section of Garner’s Instagram post was immediately flooded with condolences.

“I’m so sorry, Jen, but what a beautiful note and what a beautiful, beautiful good girl,” wrote the actress’ Alias co-star Greg Grunberg. “Sending all our love.”

Garner adopted Birdie nine years ago, following her eldest daughter Violet Anne’s 10th birthday.

“My eldest was two and decided she needed her own dog, and she talked about it all the time,” Garner previously shared with Matt Nelson during an interview on his YouTube channel We Rate Dogs. “And I said, ‘When you’re 10, that’s the age that one might get their own dog.’ And I thought she’d forget because she was just two… She did not forget.”

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