David Muir lovingly spent his Thanksgiving with his best friend since 2019 – man’s best friend that is. The journalist took to Instagram to post a carousel of adorable pictures of his dog Axel, six, who is a gorgeous German shorthaired pointer. The beautiful shoots featured Axel posing for the camera in David’s luxurious $7 million Victorian home, which includes a marble fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows. He reposted the pictures onto his stories as well and comically paired it with Rockwell’s popular hit, “Somebody’s Watching Me.”
He captioned the post: “Happy Thanksgiving from this turkey.” His co-hosts quickly chimed in, with his 20/20 co-star Deborah Roberts writing, “Happy Thanksgiving,” and Lara Spencer commenting, “I want to hug him,” with a heart emoji. His followers showed that they’re huge fans of their special bond. One person wrote: “Love this dude. Man’s best everything.” A second person added: “He’s a very handsome turkey.” A third fan wrote: “He should be on the dog show now!! Sporting group right?”
David absolutely loves his cute dog like the rest of us and has posted him regularly on his social media for years. In another post he was seen kissing Axel on a snow filled walk as he wrote: “You’ll get one kiss a day from Axel,” and in another picture, the duo were spotted in the same pose on the couch, as David humorously wrote: “We cross our paws together.” In 2023, the correspondent celebrated Axel’s fourth birthday and wrote: “I turned four today. I grew into my ears. And I’m a very good boy.” In 2021 for Axel’s second birthday, David wrote: “This little guy turned two this weekend. Gifts come in all shapes and sizes.” The reporter lives an extremely busy life; therefore, Axel helps him decompress and focus on the little things that bring him joy.
David revealed to People: “I have a German short-haired pointer, and for him, the biggest event of the weekend was discovering there was a beaver who had begun to build a dam inside the little boathouse. So I spent more time at nightfall standing on the dock with the dog who was waiting for a glimpse of this beaver coming out of the boathouse than I did doing anything else.” The anchor expressed his nostalgia and added: “When you’re out there on the lake, smelling the same air that you smelled when you were on your BMX bike back when you were a kid, there’s something really fueling about that and connected about it. You just feel like you’re home again. I couldn’t have been happier.”
Being that David was raised in upstate New York, he finds solace in the slow life with Axel when he’s away from the demanding and quick-paced newsroom. On top of that, German shorthaired pointer dogs are known for being energetic, friendly and affectionate, therefore, the two are a perfect match. He explained: “I’d say my most comfortable element is being outside, covered in mud like this weekend. It was pouring rain, and I loved every second of it.”
Despite being a household name in the industry, David believes that fans have grown to love Axel more than him. He charmingly shared: “I have a dog walker who has been with me for six years now. And so, I love the stories of even when the dog walker is out in public, people will say, ‘Is that David Muir’s dog?’ It kind of puts it all in perspective. The dog is always the most important.” The proud dog dad believes that Axel deserves all the attention he gets. David continued: “I think [he’s] more [famous]. He deserves to be. And he has no idea which makes it even more special.”
