Pets

7:28 AM PT -- The accuser's attorney tells us his client is suing for $8 million.

The woman who claims she was attacked by boxing superstar Sergey Kovalev has now filed a lawsuit against the Russian ... claiming the 35-year-old also brutalized her dog.

It's all in court docs obtained by TMZ Sports ... Jamie Frontz (who has identified herself publicly) claims she met Sergey at the grand opening of a boxing gym in Big Bear, CA back in June.

Frontz -- a model and actress -- claims Sergey and a friend followed her home from the party and Kovalev aggressively tried to have sex with her.

"At one point, Kovalev pinned Jamie to the couch, leaning over her with his hands on either side of her shoulders, such that she could not move away."

Jamie claims her dog sensed the danger and tried to intervene -- but Kovalev shoved the dog away and then kicked it in the chest.

While tending to her dog, Jamie claims, "Kovalev turned to [her] and punched her with full force directly in the face one time with a closed fist."

In her suit, Jamie claims Sergey fled the scene -- so, she called the cops.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... cops tracked down Kovalev and arrested him. He's been charged with felony assault and faces up to 4 years in prison. Kovalev has pleaded not guilty.

In her suit, Jamie claims she went to the emergency room where she was treated for a broken nose, head injuries and a concussion. She also suffered severe back and neck injuries.

The next morning, Jamie claims she saw Kovalev crawl out of the bushes near her cabin, and he yelled her name -- so, she called 911 and later got a restraining order against him.

Jamie is suing for more than $3 million in damages.

We reached out to Kovalev for comment -- so far, no word back.

Sergey is due back in court in March to face the criminal charge. He's also set to fight Eleider Alvarez this Saturday, in a rematch of an August bout that he shockingly lost.

Boo The Pomeranian -- once dubbed "World's Cutest Dog" -- has died.

Boo's owner posted the news Friday night, saying, "With deepest sadness I wanted to share that Boo passed away in his sleep early this morning and has left us to join his best friend, Buddy."

Boo was a fixture on social media ... mixing it up with celebs, attending meet and greets with fans and gaining more than 16 millions fans on Facebook.

Boo's brother Buddy died in 2017. In Friday's post, Boo's owner said, "Shortly after Buddy died, Boo showed signs of heart issues. We think his heart literally broke when Buddy left us. He hung on and gave us over a year. But it looks like it was his time, and I’m sure it was a most joyous moment for them when they saw each other in heaven."

Boo was 12 years old.

Meghan Markle's got some pretty sweet perks, even beyond the castles and tiaras ... she gets to do some volunteering with super cute dogs.

The Duchess of Sussex stopped by The Mayhew shelter in London Wednesday to meet the staff, and pet some puppers. She even got to hold a sweet Jack Russell Terrier named Minnie.

We're told Meghan's been there before, but it was her first visit since Kensington Palace announced the charity as one of her 4 royal patronages last week.

Markle -- who's about 6 months into her pregnancy, has reportedly had rescue dogs of her own before ... so, naturally, the cause is near and dear to her.

Along with meeting the doggos, we're told the Duchess also spent time checking out The Mayhew's animal therapy program ... which provides dog visits for people in need.

For Lady Gaga, her victories at the Critics' Choice Awards are totally overshadowed this morning by the news her beloved horse is dying.

The singer hauled in 2 awards Sunday for Best Song and Best Actress for her performance in "A Star is Born" -- but skipped all the after-parties because she'd just found out about her horse, Arabella.

Lady Gaga posted an emotional tribute, saying, "Our souls and spirits were one."

No doubt Arabella was a huge part of Gaga's life. She's posted tons of pictures of her trusted steed over the years.

Ikumi Yoshimatsu -- who repped Japan when she won Miss International in 2012 -- is at war with a huge-ass bird that's been feasting on expensive koi in her pond ... and TMZ's got video of the flying beast eyeing its prey.

Ikumi was baffled for weeks that 5 of her koi fish disappeared from the pond in her backyard at her Beverly Hills property. She thought maybe someone was stealing the pricey fishes (some valued at more than $10k) so she placed a net over the pond.

Turns out that didn't solve the problem ... more fish just disappeared. Then, one day, she spotted the culprit ... this massive bird (possibly a Crane). Ikumi says she saw the bird eating one of the koi. She grabbed her drone and captured the bird perched on her roof.

We're told Ikumi -- who, BTW, is an actress -- says she doesn't know how to abate the problem. The only thing that seems to keep the bird away is her Kangal Shepherd dog. As you can see from the video ... the bird keeps its distance from the pond when the pooch is around.

#FirstWorldProblems

Megyn Kelly says 2019 will be a momentous year ... she'll be back on the air, and she's ready to take the plunge with a new pooch.

Megyn was out and about with hubby Doug Brunt Thursday night in NYC, and the way she put it ... it sounds like she knows where she's heading.

As we reported, Megyn struck a huge settlement with NBC after they took her off the air ... we're told around $35 million.

And, there's another big turn for 2019. Megyn's ready to dive back into the world of dogs, after her 14-year-old Shih Tzu, Basha, died last year. She's definitely in the market, although Doug seems tentative.

Whoopi Goldberg's sweet baby boy is getting hitched to his longtime love, and there won't be a dry nose in the house ... because we're talking about an adorable dog wedding here.

"The View" co-host announced her granddog -- her daughter Alex Martin-Dean's pup, Filmore -- is engaged to a fellow French Bulldog and celebrity Instagram doggo named Izzy Hendrix (aka Izzy the Frenchie) ... and TMZ has all the deets on the upcoming puptials.

The owner of the dog-bride-to-be, Rick Hendrix, tells us ... he met Whoopi when he was working with Hillary Clinton and they teamed up on her campaign, and they've been friends ever since. He says as close as he and Whoopi are, though ... their dogs are even closer.

We're told they were hanging out over the holidays when the idea of marrying Filmore and Izzy came up ... and it quickly developed into reality. It helps that Izzy already has a stylist that used to work for Dior though.

Rick tells us this stylist has already designed Izzy's dress, and Filmore will be getting a tux for the big day from a designer in Ukraine. The wedding will be held at a private venue in NYC with a reception to follow at Whoopi's pad.

There's more -- celeb photog Timothy White will be on hand to snap pics, and the cake's coming from famed baker Juanita Lane of Dulce Desserts. We're told family and close friends will be in attendance ... and, of course, some canine friends.

BTW -- Izzy's been featured in Vogue, Paper Magazine and was on People's List of top pets.

No word if there will be a pupper prenup.

Victor Espinoza's been taking steps to return to doing what he loves after nearly dying in a training accident, and he just took another huge step ... up onto a horse!!!

The famed jockey reportedly got back on a horse for the very first time Saturday at Santa Anita since his near-death injury in July. Victor hops aboard the horse, St. Joe Bay, and goes for a little ride.

We broke the story ... the Hall of Famer was severely injured after a horse he was riding went into cardiac arrest on the track last summer in Del Mar, California. Victor nearly lost his life in the fall when a bone chipped off his neck and just missed cutting an artery.

He's been on the road to recovery ever since, getting out of a neck brace in September and working his way back into riding shape.

According to BloodHorse, Espinoza's still going through physical therapy and isn't ready to get back to racing yet.

The Texas Longhorns' mascot, Bevo the steer, was NOT down to meet its University of Georgia counterpart in Uga the bulldog, and it might be 'cause it'd just seen red.

UTA's live animal mascot was brought out to the football field Sunday ahead of the Sugar Bowl game between the two teams for what appeared to be a photo-op between Bevo and Uga. As Uga's handler trotted out the pup, Bevo started charging everyone on the scene.

Luckily, Uga was pulled to safety, and no one seemed to be harmed in the incident. Bevo calmed down shortly after going wild, and its own handlers whisked the animal away.

Considering Bevo is at least 22 times heavier than little Uga ... it's a miracle the bull didn't seriously hurt the doggo, or worse.

If this is any indication of how today's game will go ... we'd have to give the advantage to the University of Texas.

A Notre Dame fan became a human perch at the Cotton Bowl Classic after a bald eagle swooped down and landed on his shoulder.

The incredible (and probably incredibly painful) moment went down Saturday ahead of the Fighting Irish's game against the Clemson Tigers at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX. Sports Illustrated writer Ross Dellenger caught the landing on camera.

Somewhat surprisingly, the fan was able to keep his composure as the bird stood on him for nearly 20 seconds. It flapped its wings a bit as people whipped out their phones to take pictures, and the guy kinda seemed more giddy than terrified in the moment.

The eagle eventually flew away ... and obviously left the crowd wowed by its close encounter. For the record ... an adult bald eagle's talons can exert a force of up to 400 pounds of pressure per square inch when hunting. They're also really, really sharp.

Pucker up because we've got enough puppy love to go around!

These famous faces are prepared for more than just a peck at midnight ... take a lap through our gallery of sloppy celeb pooch smooches and see the stars that are ready for a crazy canine kiss!

Chris Brown claims he ain't no Michael Jackson -- meaning, he doesn't own a monkey (or a chimp!) ... and claims allegations he illegally harbored an adorable simian are pure apesh*t.

We broke the story ... the L.A. City Attorney is charging CB with 2 counts of having a restricted species without a permit claiming he kept a capuchin monkey named Fiji at his L.A. home back in 2017.

The allegations are serious, Brown could face up to 6 months in jail if convicted.

The supposed smoking gun is a video of Brown's daughter Royalty playing with Fiji in Dec. 2017 -- but sources close to Breezy tell us prosecutors got it all wrong.

Brown is adamant the video was NOT taken at his L.A. home -- it was shot in Vegas ... where the monkey lived with a relative who was the REAL owner.

Authorities ain't buyin' the excuse noting the animal was taken into custody in Los Angeles.

But, we're told Brown claims his relative happened to be in town with Fiji that particular week -- and it's all just a bad coincidence that makes Chris seem guilty.

He's due in court on February 6 where he'll plead his case to the judge. Stay tuned ...

Oh, and as for Fiji ... we're told she's been in protective custody and she's doing just fine.

Chris Brown might be better off with cats and dogs, because he just got slapped with criminal charges over his pet monkey ... TMZ has learned.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the Los Angeles City Attorney is charging CB with two counts of having a restricted species without a permit. The crimes carry a maximum sentence of 6 months in jail.

As you'll recall ... Chris got himself a baby capuchin monkey named Fiji, and he started taking major heat after posting a video of his then-3-year-old daughter, Royalty, playing with the exotic pet. People thought the wild animal posed a danger to his kid, but Chris told everyone to take a chill pill.

Our law enforcement sources say folks notified the California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, who launched an investigation.

Breezy didn't have a permit for the monkey, so authorities got a search warrant and planned to raid CB's home, but he voluntarily agreed to surrender the exotic pet.

Chris is due in court Feb. 6.

Demi Lovato was in the holiday spirit on Xmas day, celebrating with friends and family.

Demi looked relaxed and content as she snuggled with her dog. Demi had a special ornament made with the face of her dog, Buddy, who was killed in 2015 by a coyote.

She scored a few cool gifts for Xmas, including some Hermes mugs.

Terrible news out of Florida after a police dog was shot and killed by a suspect ... and the K9 is being credited for saving the lives of officers.

The sad incident went down on Xmas Eve in Wellington, Florida ... where Palm Beach County Sheriffs confronted several individuals cops say were wanted on attempted first-degree murder and armed robbery warrants.

According to local reports ... one of the suspects ran and that's when Cigo -- a 3-year-old canine -- gave chase. But the suspect shot Cigo before a deputy returned fire ... hitting the suspect and severely injuring him. Cigo, however, would later be pronounced dead at an animal hospital.

Shortly after Cigo's death, several tributes were posted in honor of the fallen officer. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office tweeted, "He gave his life to save others. He's a good boy and he will never be forgotten. Rest in Peace #K9Cigo."

The Sheriff's Office also posted this heartbreaking video of Cigo's handler devastated from the loss.

Justin and Hailey Bieber are now a family of three ... after the addition of an adorable little pooch just in time for the holidays.

Hailey shared the big news on Instagram Saturday, posting a pic of her "Christmas baby" on her story ... a puppy named Oscar Bieber. It's hard to say for certain, but it looks like he's a Maltese Yorkie.

Hailey also shared a vid of the lil pup on her bed playing around with Justin and a pic of Oscar sleeping ... yep, pretty frickin' cute.

The recently wed couple have really been enjoying the honeymoon phase lately -- kissing at hockey games, shirtless piggyback rides, etc. -- so it's only natural to take their marriage to the next level and get a dog.