LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — In a post to the Twitter account appearing to be associated with the Golden Knights celebrity dog Bark-André Furry, it was announced Friday that he had passed away. He was 14 years old.
“What a ride! Thank you everyone,” said the tweet.
Bark-André Furry, named after NHL player Marc-Andre Fleury, was well-known throughout the Las Vegas valley for years as a sports-loving therapy dog and an ambassador at the Tyler Robinson Foundation, a foundation started by Las Vegas band Imagine Dragons and Tyler’s family to help battle the unseen costs of childhood cancer.
Bark would show up at Knight’s practices, comfort children at Summerlin Hospital, and draw a huge following on social media.
Fans reacted to the news of Bark’s death. “It’s devastating. It’s sad. Hopefully, he will be up there in puppy heaven looking down on us, leading the guys to another victory,” said Vegas Golden Knights fan Matt Moschella.
Bark’s owner, Rick Williams, said he is thankful for all the messages of love and support and that fans should know that Bark is always cheering on the Knights.
“It hits different, because it’s man’s best friend. You have fun and make memories. It’s kind of like a best friend leaving out of nowhere or someone passing away, so it sucks when a dog dies, especially when he has like a big platform,” said Allessandro Suito, another fan.
“I saw him a few times here at City National, and his owner brought him by I got to pet him a few times so it’s very sad news here,” said Knights fan Tristan Jeannest.
In November, it was announced that the dog had fallen ill. Eye tests had revealed cataracts, and his blood work showed elevated sugar levels and possible liver complications, the post explained.
At the time, Bark’s owners shared that Bark was napping quite a bit, and still loved going to the park every morning and going for rides. The comments sections on the social media posts were overwhelmed with positivity and well wishes.
