Dale Earnhardt Jr. has always been an animal lover, often sharing stories about the pets that have been part of his life since childhood: a yellow Lab named Domino, Rocket the Irish setter, a boxer named Killer, and several cats, including Buddy, Cuz, Dude, and Tux. He even had hamsters, each named after characters from Days of Our Lives.
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In a 2017 interview, Junior revealed that he and Amy owned two dogs at the time, Gus, an Irish setter, and Junebug, a Pomeranian. With NASCAR’s demanding schedule, they enjoyed bringing Gus and Junebug to the racetrack whenever possible. When they couldn’t, nothing matched the joy of coming home to their dogs’ excitement.
This March, he gave a concerning update on Junebug, who had suffered a stroke that left parts of his body numb, causing balance issues and sudden collapses. Dale Jr. likened his movements to a “fainting goat.” While doctors estimated Junebug had just six months to live, Amy later shared the uplifting news that he had started barking again.
While most of his pet stories have centered on his dogs, this time Dale Jr. turned the spotlight to his cats on his Dale Jr. Download podcast. When a fan asked about Buddy, Dale Jr. recounted how he and his bus driver, Shane, adopted Buddy from a pet store in the 2000s. With their constant weekend travel, Shane suggested Buddy live on the bus.
They even built him a custom space, removing a large drawer next to the bedroom, cutting a small entryway, and fitting it with a litter box. Buddy traveled from track to track, returning home every three months or so.
After five or six years on the bus, Buddy developed diabetes and had to come off the road following an accident Shane blamed on the cat jumping onto the dashboard. Buddy received insulin shots for years and became the race shop’s resident cat, roaming under cars and keeping mice away for another six to eight years until he passed away.
Junior also owned another cat named Tux, whose primary duty was guarding the house from mice. Later, on a visit to the pet store, he found a cat identical to Buddy and decided to adopt him. This cat, however, was fiercely aggressive, willing to shred anything or anyone who came too close.
Initially, when Junior brought him home, he hid under the bed for a week, forcing Dale Jr. to slide food under to coax him out. Eventually, the cat, now named Cuz, warmed up, padding over to knead near Dale Jr. in the middle of the night. Given his combative nature, Dale Jr. considered the journey of even petting him a unique experience.
