Jonathan Van Ness divides fans after revealing he rehomed dog following shocking cat attack

Jonathan Van Ness sparked a wave of reaction after revealing he had rehomed his pet dog following a shocking attack on his cat.

In a tearful clip posted to Instagram on Thursday, the Queer Eye star shared the sad news that he had found a new home for his dog, George.

‘This is not a fun pet and family update,’ he began, explaining that George had a ‘situation’ with their cat, Liza, during which the pair got into a scuffle that left her ‘with a broken jaw’.

Van Ness said that upon realizing the severity of the injury, he was left ‘screaming and crying’ before rushing Liza to the vet, where she ultimately made a full recovery.

The TV personality explained that he knew that if the cat survived, they would not be able to keep George in their large household of pets, and made the ‘gut-wrenching’ decision to rehome him with a loving family.

He captioned the clip: ‘This has been such a devastating event and I’m sharing to say for every animal family, it’s not easy, but I’m so glad we can show up for these creatures & each other.’

Fans quickly took to social media to voice their reactions, with many expressing upset over the decision to rehome the dog despite the difficult circumstances.

One fan questioned, ‘Why not rehome the cat who was the agitator? If the dog doesn’t have a pattern of aggression.’

Another wrote, ‘If not biting attacking and had been absolutely fine for 4 years... I don't understand the sudden rehoming/only a one dog home. Pets just like humans have disagreements.’

However, there was also an outpouring of support for the TV star, with one fan posting, ‘This is so heartbreaking and of course such a tough situation to be in. Ignore the people saying you shouldn’t have rehomed the dog, some dog people are genuinely crazy.’

Another added, ‘As a vet tech, I think you made the best decision for everyone involved. While I understand the people on the dog’s side, it was a choice that needed to be made and it would be cruel to punish the cat, when they are the one suffering for the dog’s actions.’

Van Ness has long been an avid animal lover and has spoken previously about his experience with pet adoption and rescue animals.

During the pandemic, he welcomed a rescue dog named Pablo from Austin Pets Alive! Shelter in Austin, Texas. 

‘When I adopted a dog, I just didn't know what to expect,’ he told Today at the time. ‘I went to a shelter that had COVID protocols that felt really good and then I just fell (crazy) in love with Pablo, but I just didn't know a lot of what goes into dog behavior or being a dog parent.’

Van Ness rose to fame with his breakout role on the 2018 Netflix reboot of Queer Eye.

The beauty guru quickly became a fan favourite for his upbeat personality and positive social media presence, which often features his cats Harry Larry, Matilda, Liza and Genevieve.

Genevieve and Matilda joined the family in 2019 as kittens after his cat Bug the Second tragically fell from a window and died. 

‘Of all the things I've been through, if you read my book, losing Bug the Second was like... I mean, I'm gripping my arm now just talking about it,’ Van Ness said. 

‘It was so sad that I impulse-adopted two kittens literally the same day because I was so unhinged with grief. I never thought this could happen. I never thought it would happen.’

For others struggling with the challenges of a new pet, Van Ness has previously urged compassion, saying: ‘I just think compassion is the first thing that we need because there is so much guilt and shame.’

‘Pre-'Queer Eye', there's no way I could have had the financial resources or even the emotional and mental resources to know what to do because it is honestly harder than I thought,’ he said. 

‘I think it's just having compassion for yourself. If it is too much, and you know in your heart of hearts that you tried (and) it is not working? Fine, I think it is OK.’

He added: ‘If you need to make another choice for yourself and for your other pets and for the dog, follow the rules of the shelter, go by the book, but do what's best for your situation.’