COUPLESKelly Ripa Teases Mark Consuelos for Caring More About Their Dog Than Her as Couple Argues About Their Pup's Morning Anxiety
Kelly Ripa teased her husband once again on the Friday, July 17, episode of their talk show.
July 17 2026, Published 3:19 p.m. ET
Kelly Ripa has never been afraid to call out her husband and co-host Mark Consuelos.
On the Friday, July 17, episode of their morning show Live with Kelly and Mark, the longtime couple's newest back-and-forth centers on their pup's morning anxiety, or lack thereof.
Ripa started, "Why hugging your dog may be doing more harm than good."
"I told you this," Consuelos jumped in.
"I told you this!" Ripa quickly snapped back.
Kelly Ripa rolled her eyes as Mark Consuelos talked about their dog Lena.
Her husband, who has been candid about his love for their dog Lena, said, "Oh, no, no, no, no. I told you, you're like, 'No, it's not true.' I'm like, Don't hug your dog. Don't hug your dog."
"Says the man who carries his dog around like a newborn baby," Ripa claimed as she rolled her eyes.
Consuelos clarified, "I carry her," while Ripa continued to roll her eyes, "Like a newborn...."
"I carry her. She's just like..." Consuelos said as he demonstrated how the dog lies in his arms.
'They Don't Like That, Either'
Kelly Ripa shared that hugging dogs does not 'have the same meaning' as when humans hug.
Ripa continued to explain, "Yeah. They don't like that, either. Dogs, they say it doesn't have the same meaning the way we hug."
"They feel like they're being attacked, right?" He questioned.
Ripa replies, "It restrains them. It gives them anxiety. They try to move out; they try to get away from you. So if your dog is turning your head away, lip licking, yawning. Showing the whites of their eyes, ears pinned back. Oh, Lena sometimes gets wild-eyed. But that's usually right before she gets the zoomies."
- Kelly Ripa Teases Mark Consuelos After He Admits to Having 'Weird Bond' With Dog Lena: 'I Would Say Codependency'
- Kelly Ripa Thinks Husband Mark Consuelos 'Looks Like a Rottweiler': Watch
- Panicked Kelly Ripa Called 911 After Accidentally Locking Her Dog, Keys and Phone in the Car: 'Mark Is Going to Kill Me'
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
'That Happened This Morning'
Mark Consuelos said their dog Lena was suffering from anxiety this morning.
Consuelos referenced this morning, saying, "That happened this morning. I said... but you're like, 'you're tired.' I go, she's anxious."
"No, no, no. No, no. She was actually tired. You had just taken her out of bed, and she yawned, and he's like, 'she's suffering from anxiety,'" Ripa recalled.
'I've Been Suffering From Anxiety in Front of You Conservatively for 30 Years'
Kelly Ripa argued back and said the dog was just 'tired.'
Right after she quipped, "And I was like, I've been suffering from anxiety in front of you conservatively for 30 years. And you have never said, 'Uh oh, she's suffering from anxiety.' I literally will look at him, and I think I'm having an anxiety attack, and he's like, 'You're fine, you're fine.'"
"Come to think of it, when I give you a hug, you turn your head away, and you're like, as he shows the whites of his eyes," he teased her, "Let's see your ears? Yeah, they're pinned back."
