Entertainment

Halsey mourns ‘sudden and shocking’ death of pet dog Jagger

The singer shared a lengthy tribute with her 28.4 million Instagram followers.
The singer shared a lengthy tribute with her 28.4 million Instagram followers.

Halsey has shared their heartbreak following the death of their dog, describing the time since his passing as “the worst week of my life”.

The 27-year-old pop singer, who uses she/they pronouns, urged their followers to “love your pets every single second” in a lengthy post on Instagram.

Halsey said Jagger had died aged five from myelomalacia, a disorder which refers to the softening of the spinal cord and can cause paralysis.

The singer, who shares a son with music producer Alev Aydin, adopted the dog in 2017.

Halsey wrote: “This has been the worst week of my life. Before I had a dog of my own, I would hear people mourn their pets and think ‘it’s just a dog…’ well I couldn’t have been more wrong.

“I got Jagger when he was just a few weeks old. I sometimes thought about him passing. How would it feel?

“Well he’d be old and rickety and grumpy by then. We’d spend the last few years giving him extra ice cream and lazy sunbathing days that he loved when he was too old to run in circles.”

Halsey said they had feared his death “immensely” but was “at peace” with the fact they thought they would have many more years together.

However, the singer added: “Unfortunately that is not how it happened for us. Jagger was 5 years old and yesterday we lost him to a progressive condition called Myelomalacia.

“It is sudden and uncommon and unfair with a catastrophic prognosis.

“Within 3 days my beautiful baby boy went from chasing imaginary birds around the yard and laying in my lap turning his ears up at the sounds of Sesame Street, to having paralysis spread through his body by the hour.

MTV Europe Music Awards 2018 – Show – Bilbao
Halsey performs on stage at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2018 (Ian West/PA)

“It was sudden and shocking and I still haven’t even really processed it.”

Finneas O’Connell, Hailey Bieber and Australian singer and YouTuber Troye Sivan were among those sharing their condolences.

Halsey also responded to suggestions they should not be so upset about losing a pet.

“If you’re reading this and you don’t have a pet, you might be thinking ‘it’s just a dog.’ Like I maybe used to,” they said.

“But I can tell you you’re wrong. So f****** wrong. It’s the most visceral loss I have ever felt. Like the absence of a vital appendage.

“Every single second of my day that once revolved around his little habits and routines is now full of just emptiness and silence.

“If you loved Jagger along with me, thank you for giving him the best life the bestest boy could have ever had.”

Halsey, whose hits including Without Me and Nightmare, and Aydin had their son Ender in July 2021.