ESPN's Adam Schefter issues tragic update on pet dog Benny

ESPN’s Adam Schefter has commemorated the loss of one of his dogs, 15-year-old labradoodle Benny, who died on Wednesday morning. 

Schefter posted a long tribute to Benny, revealing his cancer diagnosis from last year and that he was set to be put down on Wednesday morning but passed away in his sleep overnight instead. 

Schefter has four other dogs, Ella, Bailey, Apple, and Brady, all labradoodles. 

Several years ago was Benny’s first cancer diagnosis and he went into remission after doctors removed one of his kidneys. 

After an injury that occurred last February, doctors revealed to Schefter that Benny had torn his ACL, had liver cancer, and had other masses that spread to his lungs all at once. 

He was given two to three months to live and persevered for nearly a year. 

 Schefter revealed Benny’s long health journey and his battle with liver cancer since February

‘This was a day we knew was coming since last February, and yet there still is an overwhelming sense of sadness,’ Schefter said on social media. ‘We had planned to put down our beloved Benny, who was our baby for over 15 years. He had liver cancer that had spread, he could barely stand anymore, and he stopped eating.’ 

‘We scheduled a vet to come to our house at 11 am today, and spent all of Monday and Tuesday crying over, and with, Benny. And then, when we woke this morning for the day we dreaded, Benny was gone. He died in his sleep. We are in shock.’ 

‘Our life revolves around our family, our dogs and, for better or worse, my work. But unlike our family or my work, dogs never give us any aggravation — only love and loyalty. Benny was one of our five labradoodles; but he truly was one of one.’ 

‘He wasn’t a good boy; he was the best boy — and we told that to him regularly. Benny never bit anyone, never attacked one of our other dogs when they attacked him, he was such a gentle boy. One time when he was a puppy, he did jump out of out of the window of a moving car to chase after a pitbull before my wife had to pull over and chase him down. But aside from that, Benny gave us zero problems — except for his health.’

Benny’s death is not the first ESPN analyst who publicly commemorated his dog’s passing in recent months. 

Kirk Herbstreit’s 10-year-old golden retriever, who frequently accompanied him on the road during his assignments, passed away in November after a battle with leukemia.