Former reality TV star Jon Gosselin and his wife, Stephanie Lebo, are welcoming a new, four-legged family member to the fold following the death of their beloved dog, Toby.
“We had been looking at rescue [dogs] and Adriane Schwartz found a puppy at Big Love Animal Rescue in California,” Stephanie exclusively tells Us Weekly, introducing white, fluffy Theo to the world. “They don’t normally send dogs across the country, but she offered to bring him as a wedding gift.”
The pair, who got engaged in November 2024 following Jon’s 2009 split from Kate Gosselin, were planning on having their 16-year-old dog Toby (“The woo was my little fur brother,” Stephanie says) walk her down the wedding aisle. Unfortunately, the dog died in September 2025 — months before the pair’s November 2025 nuptials.
“Losing him left a huge void, not only in our home but also in both our parents’ home,” Jon exclusively tells Us. “We are all dog lovers in our family. Toby spent so much time between both our families and we all missed him terribly.”
Jon Gosselin incorporated wife Stephanie Lebo’s daughter into their wedding with a very special mention in his vows. “I promise to love you with conditions to lift you up when you’re tired, to laugh with you in joy and hold you in sorrow,” Gosselin, 48, said during his wedding ceremony, according to a video shared […]
The Jon and Kate Plus 8 alum adds, “After the wedding, it just felt like the right moment to bring a little bundle of joy back into everyone’s lives “by adopting a little dog and welcoming a new member into the family.”
Lisa Arturo, founder of Big Love Animal Rescue, tells us that Theo — or Theodore — along with his sister, Eloise, and their mom, Maddie, were “abandoned and left at a shelter by someone who no longer wanted them.”
“When we learned about their situation, we knew we had to step in and save them,” Arturo explains. “We rescue dogs of all breeds, sizes and ages, but we have a particularly soft spot for pregnant moms and newborn puppies. We believe it’s incredibly important to get terrified pregnant dogs out of crowded shelters and into loving foster homes where they can safely give birth. When Theodore was ready to go to his forever home, we spoke to Stephanie and Jon and felt they were a perfect home for a puppy.”
Jon tells us that Theo — who he describes as “fun-loving” and “cute” — has “lifted not only our energy and happiness” but the pairs’ friends and family members’ energy and happiness, too.
“He has brought so much love and excitement back into all of our lives,” he adds. “Plus, my wife is ecstatic over him. I love seeing her so happy!”
Collin Gosselin couldn’t have been happier to witness his dad, Jon Gosselin, marry Stephanie Lebo. “When my dad first told me he was getting married, I was very happy for him, and my first thought was that he deserves this,” Collin, 21, told Entertainment Tonight at the wedding on Sunday, November 23. “As does everybody […]
“Our patience and understanding are being tested, but it’s been incredible to watch everyone easily adjust, shift their attention and work together to raise this little guy as a family,” Stephanie adds. “It has truly become a team effort, which I love, and that has been really special to see — especially for me.”
Because both Jon and Stephanie have been open about their shared decision to forgo expanding their family with any human children, the pair tells Us they’re thrilled to be parents to another fur baby. (Jon shares eight kids with Kate, while Stephanie has a daughter from a previous relationship.)
“I think between Jon and I, bringing nine babies into the world is plenty,” Stephanie says. “He is mostly ‘our baby.’ Just with four legs rather than two legs. He is absolutely our baby and the entire family’s baby. He has already stolen all of our hearts and become such a special part of our family.”
As far as any future furry friends joining the fold, the couple tells us that they’ll always choose rescuing an animal over buying one.
“If anything, it means a lot that we were able to rescue from 3,000 miles away [and] from Big Love Animal Rescue,” Jon says. “We’re so grateful for our close friends and manager Adriane and Nick for flying him home to us, that means so much.”
“I’ll always choose rescue over a breeder, and Big Love Animal Rescue has been so incredible helping us organize the pick up and paperwork,” Stephanie adds. “And he is such a loving dog, I know his foster was amazing.”
She continues, “Every animal deserves a loving home, but rescuing just feels more meaningful. Jon and I have always been the type to say, ‘Let’s just do it,’ no matter what we’re jumping into, and we always follow through and do it well together.”
