Pets

Carrie Fisher's dog was such an adorable companion on the set of 'Last Jedi' it was only a matter of time until the 'Star Wars' flick paid homage to him.

'Last Jedi' director Rian Johnson was at LAX Thursday and he tells our guy exactly why Gary the Dog inspired a character in the highly-anticipated movie. It's easy to see how Gary's likeness charmed his way onto the big screen ... he had us here, here and here.

Rian swears he's told no one about the plot points ... but Ram Bergman confesses he spilled the beans here and there.

Lisa Vanderpump's lawyers didn't screw the pooch on the lawsuit she was facing over doggy clothing -- it's been dropped for good.

The suit -- filed by dog boutique Fifi & Romeo against Lisa -- has been dismissed with prejudice, meaning they can't refile it. Looks like Lisa might have thrown them a bone, as in a few bucks, because F&R asked the court to toss the case.

We broke the story ... the boutique sued Lisa for allegedly failing to promote their company after they agreed to dress Giggy for events and photo shoots.

4:30 PM PT -- Olivia is leaping to Chance's defense and says he was merely pulling the ole "scratch me on my leg" move.

"Chance, nooooooo!!!"

... Is what Olivia Munn probably should have shouted as her rescue dog greeted a greeter at LAX by marking his territory and peeing on her left leg.

Munn was flying out of the airport Wednesday for Thanksgiving with Chance and her other dog, Frankie. Clearly, one pooch is more of a bad boy (but they're both good boys).

Olivia didn't seem to notice and the LAX employees didn't seem to mind ... so airport crisis averted.

The actress and her pups strolled away afterward, all smiles.

Khalid just got himself a new dog -- but the adoption was no walk in the park ... not even close.

Sources close to the adoption tell TMZ Khalid got put through the ringer Saturday -- with a 4-hour long interview and vetting process at L.A.'s Bark n' Bitches.

We're told BNB had the R&B singer fill out extensive paperwork and provide references to make sure he was up to the task -- considering he's only 19 and constantly touring the country. Lucky for Khalid, we're told his manager offered a glowing reference on the spot, and he was approved.

In the end, he walked out with a 9-week-old pit bull mix named Roxy. We're told his total cost was several hundred bucks ... including treats, tags, toys and a bed.

Every dog has its day, but it has a better day when Verne Troyer shows up with a bag of treats!

Verne visited the Animal Hope and Wellness Foundation Tuesday in Sherman Oaks. The place is awesome ... it rescues doggos from the Asian meat trade, and the ones in these pics just got flown in from Korea 24 hours earlier.

Verne greeted the pups -- including the ones nearly taller than him -- because his personal assistant volunteers at the rescue shelter. He didn't adopt one himself, but we're told Verne made sure they were all well fed.

So doggone great!

Mira Sorvino and Christopher Backus' 11-year-old son just scored a big payday for suffering a traumatic dog attack when he was a young child.

According to new legal docs ... Mira took her son, Johnny Backus, with her to a house she was looking to buy on a night in September 2013 when the owner's dog went after him, biting and lacerating his legs and knees. Johnny -- who was 7 at the time -- had to be treated and stitched up at the hospital.

According to the docs ... Mira's son has recovered from the injuries but was left with some scarring. He was also traumatized and became fearful of dogs. His doctor says he's regained some confidence by being around his family's dogs.

Here's a disgusting video of a lowlife jockey socking a horse in the stomach before a race in Australia, and we're warning you, it's pretty tough to watch.

It went down in Port Lincoln, Australia when jockey Dylan Caboche got aggravated with his horse, pre-race dismounted and put a right uppercut to the animal's midsection.

What's worse it that you can see the scumbag Caboche was still holding his jockey whip in his hand, making the punch actually more of a jab with the end of the piece of equipment.

Caboche received a 2-week suspension for his actions, and while his horse Reneldasgirl seemed to be okay, but it's amazing that this type of animal abuse didn't warrant a more stiff penalty.

Disgusting.

Sean Penn's known for playing the bad boy, but his mushy side's a real thing too -- just add puppies and his gf, Leila George.

Sean and Leila were dog shopping Sunday in Louisiana at a local breeder who specializes in Goldendoodles and Retrievers. Cue the awwws.

The couple played with the pups for about an hour, and Sean got in plenty of cuddling -- but we don't know if the pooches moved the needle enough for him to purchase.

This is the first time we've seen Sean since he attempted to block Kate Del Castillo's Netflix documentary about El Chapo. We broke the story ... Sean was worried she'd implicate him as a snitch, and potentially put a target on his back.

The doc aired, but nothing eases fear like puppy love.

Who needs champagne and beer ... when you've got Kate Upton and Harley?!

After the Houston Astros beat down the L.A. Dodgers and won the World Series, stud pitcher Justin Verlander went back to the team hotel with his supermodel girlfriend for a romantic post-game stroll.

FYI, Harley is an adorable boxer that Kate rescued roughly 6 years ago -- and she loves him like a child ... so she travels everywhere with him.

Sweet video after a sweet victory -- congrats!!

Nothing scary about these pooches in their Halloween costumes ... they're all doggone adorable!

The Haute Dog Howl'oween Parade went down Sunday in Long Beach with canines turning up in some creative costumes which upstaged their two-legged owners.

There was everything from a Paw-casso to a Pee-wee Herman. And while Trump was a popular costume last year, Pennywise from "It" dominated this year with the canines.

Special shout-out to the dog and his paw-rents who recreated "The Shining."

Bethenny Frankel had an extremely tough weekend -- her family dog suffered a massive seizure ... and now she's saying she might have to put her down.

Bethenny posted a number of harrowing videos Saturday of her pup, Cookie, having a seizure at her home ... with a distraught Bethenny literally asking her social media followers what she should do, especially since her nearest vet is 40 min away.

Bethenny later said their docs didn't have good news at first -- Cookie was alive, but unconscious ... but she's now resting with a high temperature. During the seizure scare, Bethenny said she'd be putting her down if she didn't recover.

The ex-RHONY star caught flak for what some thought was a terrible reaction to the situation -- people assumed she waited 45 minutes before bringing the dog to the vet, and opted to film instead.

Bethenny cleared up the controversy, though ... she said they left for the vet only 3 minutes into Cookie's seizure, and that she only resorted to social media out of desperation.

Spencer Pratt is hurting after suffering a huge loss -- a tiny bird he believes succumbed to the unseasonable heat.

The reality TV star woke up to the horror in his L.A. home Tuesday -- after sleeping in a little late. One of his backyard hummingbirds -- which he'd befriended -- was unresponsive.

Spencer was emotional, but gathered himself to go buy supplies for a proper burial for his beloved "hummer angel." Check out the ceremony. Just beautiful.

He has a message for his fellow hummingbird lovers too -- don't use red dye nectar!!! He thinks it kills them.

President Emmanuel Macron's dog got a leg up on his owner Sunday ... when he pissed on a fireplace during an official meeting ... and the Prez lost it!

Listen as you watch the video ... you hear the pee stream loud and clear and Macron busts up.

He was meeting with the junior minister for ecology, and other junior members of his government.

Nemo's a black lab that was the first Presidential pet to come from a rescue shelter. We're guessing he gets a pass.

What a relief.

Vladimir Putin has a new bff -- a super adorable puppy, which he'll probably turn into a vicious killer in no time flat.

The Russian Prez got the lil' pooch as a belated birthday gift Wednesday from the president of Turkmenistan -- and you gotta see the video of the hand off. Full "Lion King" style.

The Central Asian shepherd pup's name is Verny -- Russian for "loyal" -- and even though we're normally suckers for anyone snuggling with cute puppies ... still not enough to overlook alleged human rights atrocities on Putin's watch.

Nothing personal, Verny -- but keep your head on a swivel, dawg!

Prince Harry got a leg up ... 'cause he's a good boy. Yes, he is!!

Harry greeted British war hero Phillip Eaglesham and his service dog, Copper, at a Heads Together event -- a mental health initiative set up by Harry, Prince William and Kate. The royal fam hosted the event in honor of Tuesday being World Mental Health Day.

Hard to tell from the pics who's more impressive in this meeting here.

Then again, we're sure Harry would do a few tricks too ... for the right treat.

Good news, America ... Boomer Esiason is coming back for another Kitten Bowl!

The Hallmark Channel announced the former Cincinnati Bengals QB will return to call the play-by-play on Feb. 4 as several rescued cats vie for the "national championship of feline football."

Beth Stern -- Howard Stern's wife -- will host the show with correspondents Dean Cain and Alison Sweeney.