Lady Gaga welcomes sweet new puppy three years after her dogwalker was shot and her pets were kidnapped

Lady Gaga has welcomed a new puppy - three years after a shock incident in which her dogwalker Ryan Fischer was shot and two of her pets were kidnapped.

The 38-year-old songstress broke her happy news on TikTok this week, uploading a selfie video cuddling up to her new French bulldog.

Holding her pooch close, she mouthed along to the lyric: 'If the world was ending, I wanna be next to you,' from her new song Die With A Smile with Bruno Mars.

Gaga, whose Christian name is Stefani Germanotta, did not disclose the name or the sex of the new addition to her household. 

She also owns three other French bulldogs - Koji and Gustav, who were abducted in 2021, and another called Miss Asia.

Ryan Fischer was walking all three dogs at night in February 2021 when he was shot four times by one of a gang of criminals who made off with Koji and Gustav. 

The dogwalker, who was also friends with Gaga, nearly died of his injuries and spent weeks in the hospital before he was finally able to be discharged. 

Gaga covered all of Ryan's medical expenses and offered $500,000 to whoever was able to bring Koji and Gustav back to her.

A judge ultimately ruled Gaga did not have to pay the reward because the woman who returned the dogs to her was an accessory to the crime.

According to the prosecution, the kidnappers knew the dogs were a rare and desirable breed but were unaware they belonged to Gaga. 

Five suspects were charged in connection with the kidnapping that April, and the man who shot Ryan was sentenced to 21 years. 

During the sentencing hearing, Ryan was able to face the culprit and say: 'You shot me and left me to die, and both of our lives have changed forever.'

In August 2021, Ryan resurfaced with a GoFundMe, asking the public to help bankroll his 'healing' road trip around America.

He took a sabbatical and traveled for two months before his van broke down, prompting him to set up a page on the crowdfunding site.

Ryan revealed that he had no apartment and was still suffering from 'emotional and mental health' problems in the aftermath of the shooting.

He shared that he was 'getting a van and exploring this country while seeking out communities that support the process of growing from trauma. For me, this includes retreat centers, trauma programs, queer healers, creatives and spiritual leaders.'

In a controversial statement, he said that he had felt 'abandoned and unsupported' by some of the people around him, prompting fans to believe he was taking aim at Gaga despite the fact she had paid his medical bills.

Ryan quickly clarified he did not mean to 'blame' anyone, telling Rolling Stone: 'It's what happens in trauma - all your loved ones, all your family, everyone: you feel alone,' and adding that his feelings were all part of his 'journey' to recovery. 

This January, he revealed he had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and added that he had experienced difficulty retaining 'a lot of memories' between the night he got shot and 'a few months ago.'