Tom Brady wasn’t ready to say goodbye to his late dog Lua — so he took matters into his own hands.
Brady, 48, announced on Tuesday, November 4, that his new dog, Junie, is a clone of pit bull mix Lua, who he shared with his ex-wife, Gisele Bündchen.
The future NFL Hall of Famer made the announcement on the same day that Colossal Biosciences, a biotech start-up in which Brady invests, acquired animal cloning firm Viagen Pets and Equine.
“I love my animals,” Brady said in a statement released by the company. “They mean the world to me and my family. A few years ago, I worked with Colossal and leveraged their non-invasive cloning technology through a simple blood draw of our family’s elderly dog before she passed.”
Tom Brady Jokes He’s ‘Ready’ to Kick Son Jack, 18, ‘Out the Door’
Brady and Bündchen, 45, adopted Lua before their divorce in 2022. Lua died in December 2023.
“We love you Lua RIP,” Brady wrote via his Instagram Story at the time. Brady also shared a photo of Lua basking in the sun in another post, writing, “Forever in our hearts.”
Bündchen also remembered Lua on social media after her death.
“Our little Lulu, our guardian angel is gone to heaven,” the supermodel shared via Instagram. “She will forever live in our hearts. We already miss her sooooo much! #unconditionallove RIP Lua 💔.”
Brady and Bündchen filed for divorce in October 2022 after 13 years of marriage. They share son Benjamin, 15, and daughter Vivian, 12.
The former NFL quarterback also shares son Jack, 18, with his ex Bridget Moynahan.
Animals have played a big role in Brady’s life, and he even volunteered at an animal shelter during his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
After he officially retired from the NFL in February 2023, the wife of former Buccaneers and New England Patriots defensive back Logan Ryan detailed the experience of volunteering with Brady.
Tom Brady Confuses Viewers by Comparing Slamming a Helmet to Kicking a Dog
“I guess I’ll chime in with my Tom Brady story … but it’s not the one about 7 Super Bowls or being down 28-3 or his last pass as a Patriot. We all know those,” Ashley Ryan shared via Instagram. “It’s the one about the dad who volunteered at the animal shelter with his kids throughout an entire football season. The one where he bonded with his kids over naming puppies and bottle feeding kittens. The one where he silently showed up every other week to make a difference for his family and his community.”
She added, “The one where 2 dads just got to be dads and beamed with pride every time their kids said ‘Please can we just stay a little bit longer?!’ The one where two little girls built a friendship around their love of tiny baby kittens and did their part in making the world a better place for animals.”
Ashley shared that Brady’s volunteer work “wasn’t for publicity” and pictures were hardly taken during their time at the shelter.
“It was about Tom taking the very thing his little girl loves the most and turning it into an opportunity to spend time together,” she wrote. “It was about Tom reaching out to his friend, asking how to get involved, helping his community by giving something far more meaningful than money … his time.”
