Gus Kenworthy and boyfriend get tattoos in tribute to their dead puppy
Gus Kenworthy and Matthew Wilkas with Beemo, who passed away in May. (Instagram/guskenworthy)
Olympic freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy and his boyfriend Matt Wilkas have got tattoos in remembrance of their late puppy Beemo, who passed away in May.
Kenworthy took to Instagram on Tuesday (January 1) saying that he and Wilkas had pledged to get inked in honour of Beemo after she died.
The couple adopted puppy Beemo from a South Korean dog meat farm in February, while Kenworthy was competing for the US at the Winter Olympics.
Gus Kenworthy and his boyfriend Matt Wilkas both got a portrait of their late puppy Beemo inked on their forearms. (guskenworthy/Instagram)
The sportsman explained that he secretly booked a tattoo appointment for he and Wilkas when the pair were in London to celebrate the New Year.
Gus Kenworthy says Beemo “changed our lives and stole our hearts”
“I couldn’t be happier with how the portraits turned out and I am immensely proud to have a little bit of Beemo living on with us forever!” Kenworthy wrote.
Kenworthy uploaded a photo showing his and Wilkas’ tattoos of Beemo’s face on their forearms.
The skier also reflected on 2018, noting how it was the first time he had competed at the Winter Olympics as an openly gay man.
“I couldn’t be happier with how the portraits turned out and I am immensely proud to have a little bit of Beemo living on with us forever!”
—Gus Kenworthy
He explained: “Like everybody, my year had a lot of ups-and-downs. One of my biggest highlights came while I was in Korea. Just being there, competing in my second Winter Olympics (this time out and proud), was a highlight in and of itself but moreso than that was what happened the day after I competed.
“Matt and I had a gut-wrenching visit to a dog meat farm where we meet and adopted our first dog, Beemo and also witnessed the birth of our other pup, Birdie.
“Although our time with Beemo was short she changed our lives and stole our hearts.”
We now have a “little bit of Beemo” with us forever, says Gus Kenworthy
Beemo died from a birth defect in May.
However, Kenworthy and Wilkas adopted another puppy, Birdie, in August, which the couple also rescued from a dog meat farm in South Korea.
Following Beemo’s death, Kenworthy wrote on Instagram: “Two days ago my beautiful baby Beemo passed away. It was completely unexpected and Matt and I are beside ourselves trying to cope with her loss.”
Kenworthy explained how “for a week or so” he and Wilkas had been “worrying” because Beemo was showing less interest in her food.
The couple took Beemo to the vet, but he said that a scan “revealed that her lungs were deteriorated and that her heart was too big for her body,” which he said was “a birth defect we had no way of knowing about.”
