K-Pop idols! They’re just like us. They love pets. Here’s a list of just a few of them and their favorite furry friends.
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Taecyeon and Edie
In 2015, Taecyeon was a member of the Korean reality show Three Meals a Day, a cooking show which featured celebrities living in the Korean countryside and planting and cooking their meals. In one of the most highly-rated episodes, a mixed-breed dog named Minki gave birth to two dogs: Edie and Sapphire. Taecyeon enjoyed his run on the show, and afterward, ended up adopting Edie.
Today, Taecyeon and Edie are happily living together, and Edie even has his own Instagram account: @eddieakagaedi.
EXO’s Sehun and Vivi
EXO’s youngest member Sehun’s pet is a bichon frise named Vivi in 2016. Throughout the years, fans have seen Vivi, most memorably in Sehun’s EXO-SC solo MV “On Me.” He has also been photographed wearing items with Vivi designs on them, like sneakers, shirts, and even his cellphone case. It’s a tradition in EXO concerts for fans to throw gifts on stage and most gifts for Sehun end up being bichon frise stuffed toys.
On an Instagram Live this year, Sehun showed off Vivi, and a fan’s screencap went viral, due to Vivi giving off a “side-eye” look.
EXO’s Chanyeol and Zzar (and Toben)
Chanyeol has two dogs: Toben and Zzar. Toben is a black poodle breed named after Beethoven while Zzar is named after Mozart (as you can tell, Chanyeol loves composers). After an appearance with Sehun and Vivi, where Toben ran riot all over the place while Vivi sat calmly, it’s been a joke among fans that Chanyeol and Toben are enemies. (However, Toben does have his own Instagram account.)
Zzar is Chanyeol’s newest dog, who he showed on his Instagram last year. They seem to get along easier than Chanyeol and Toben do, and he is always dressing her up in cute outfits. During Chuseok (Korea’s Thanksgiving holiday), he posted pictures of her on Instagram stories.
NCT Dream’s Chenle
While most young idol group members live together (it’s an easier way for entertainment agencies to keep track of them, and a good way of fostering a close relationship), one of NCT Dream’s Chinese members Chenle lives in a separate apartment with his Mom. Due to COVID-19 his parents have not been able to visit, but fear not because Chenle isn’t lonely: last year, he adopted Daegal, a bichon.
Since then, Daegal has been in a couple of videos with the rest of the NCT dream members, most memorably an official one on the NCT youtube page where they did a cute, puppy version of a Dol ceremony (a Korean 1st-year birthday tradition where a child picks between five things that will spell out their future), and a V-Live in Chenle’s apartment.
According to Chenle, the members of the group only visit just to see Daegal (member Haechan is obsessed with her and calls himself her boyfriend). This year, to the shock of many people, Chenle attempted to give her a haircut himself. It did not end well. But fear not! Daegal is still cute and on Chenle’s last episode as Akdong Seoul’s DJ (a Chinese-language radio broadcast) he showed her off, thankfully with her hair that has grown back.
2PM Junho and his cats
Lest you think this list all dog people, a few K-Pop idols also love cats! 2PM’s Junho is one of them. He has had quite a few over the years: Johnny (Bengal), Wolie (Burmese), Lambo and Autumn (both Maine Coons), and Ggomaengi (Russian Blue). Ggomaengi was a gift from fellow 2PM member Chansung. In April 2017, Lambo sadly passed away, and Junho wrote him a song, Fine. Of the experience, he said, “Thanks to the song, I have been able to heal and get better.”
Way V and Louis, Leon, and Bella
Korea-based Chinese idol group WayV owns three pets amongst themselves: Leon, Louis, and Bella. Leon is a Siamese cat, while Louis is an Abyssinian. Bella, the only dog, is a Beagle. Way V all used to live in one dorm but now live in two. The cats are primarily taken care of by Ten, so they moved with him to the new dorm (along with other members Kun and Yang Yang), while Bella stayed in the old dorm with Xiaojun, her primary caretaker. Because Bella grew up with cats she sometimes exhibits cat-like behavior, although she did memorably pee on Xiaojun’s carpet.
Recently, Yang Yang started buying fish as pets, and there have been a few situations where fans have caught the cats trying to drink the water in the fish tank. Because Ten is starting activities in China soon, Kun and Yang Yang are now caring for the cats in his stead. Sometimes, Yang Yang ends up accidentally eating cat food.
