No wags, just butt-shakes: Justin Baldoni talks his dog, 'Happy', and pets' impact on mental health

Of the 23 million American households that adopted a pet during the pandemic, one was Justin Baldoni's.

"We got him in early 2020," Baldoni told USA TODAY Wednesday while in New York City for the 9th edition of the New York Dog Film Festival. "Not sure if it was the best decision. It was a pandemic puppy. My wife and I were like, 'Oh, we should get a dog and kids would love it.'"

"It was like having another kid in the house," he laughed. "It was a lot."

Baldoni, 40, named the newest member of the family, a golden doodle, Happy.

Turns out Happy, who is now four years old, has got a lot of anxiety.

"The name isn't always fitting for his personality," the "It Ends With Us" actor said. "He is genuinely happy though (and is) a sweetheart."

There is only one person in Baldoni's family who is able to manage Happy's anxiety. The actor's father Sam Baldoni.

"(Happy) and my dad have bonded in the most beautiful way," Baldoni said. "I joke that my dad is Happy's service dog. My dad is this like calm, sweet, empathetic man and Happy is a little bit high strung."

"My dad just calms him down," the actor-producer added. "It's so sweet."

Happy maintains a gluten-free diet because he gets rashes and hot spots and is "spoiled" when it comes to food, Baldoni shares, adding the pooch's favorite snacks include anything he can eat off the table such as steaks.

Even with his anxiety, Happy manages to light up the space wherever he goes, says Baldoni, especially the way he expresses his excitement.

"He doesn't know how to wag his tail," Baldoni said. "So, he wags his butt. Like he wags his entire butt. And it looks like he's salsa dancing or something."

Dogs don't hide their emotions

Baldoni added that the thing he likes most about dogs is that "you know where you stand" with them.

"They don't hide their emotions from you," Baldoni said. "They don't suppress anything. When they're genuinely happy, they're happy, and that's infectious."

Baldoni, who has long been advocating for mental health awareness and speaking up against toxic masculinity (he also wrote a New York Times bestseller on the subject "Boys will be Human"), expressed that dogs or animals in general are amazing "to help people struggling with their mental health." A 2019-study published by Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association noted that owning a dog is linked with living longer, especially among those with heart problems.

However, the actor clarified that that doesn't mean that anyone should "just run out and get a dog."

"I don't want to say like dogs are just a fix for anxiety or for mental health disorders," Baldoni said. "If you're somebody who's dealing with depression or anxiety, I would just make sure that you have the time and the space in your life to take care of a dog because it is a lot of responsibility."

Service dog salute

The "Jane the Virgin" alum recently also partnered with Purina Dog Chow for this year's NY Dog Film Festival and selected the winner of the new "Service Dog Salute" category which spotlighted the impact service dogs have on vets suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

"Dogs show you affection," Baldoni said. "There's a relationship there that's really beautiful."

While Baldoni was advocating for allocation of more resources for the training of service dogs and to help those suffering from PTSD, the actor added that the subject is part of a wider discussion on mental health and breaking the shackles of toxic masculinity.

"I've spent a lot of time working in the masculinity space, and with men," Baldoni said while speaking on a panel during an exclusive screening of the nominated films for the "Service Dog Salute" category. "I believe that the courage it takes to admit you have PTSD or that there's something off, is as if not more courageous than going into battle."

"That is not something that's ever talked about," he continued. "When I'm watching these men who were willing to ask for help, that's the thing that makes me deeply emotional because I know what kind of courage that takes. That is real courage, that is real bravery."

'A Dog Can Make a Difference'

Baldoni also appreciated Dog Chow and the NY Dog Film Festival for highlighting the message through film, a medium he believes "can ignite that spark in us to maybe care about something that we didn't care about before."

"(When) I watched this particular film (the winner), I felt very drawn to be more of an advocate in this space and to learn more about the Service Dog Salute program and to learn more about how these service dogs help veterans," Baldoni said. "I also found myself choking up at one point."

A recent study from the University of Arizona in partnership with the National Institute of Health noted that service dogs have a big impact on the lives of veterans experiencing PTSD, such as lowering PTSD severity, anxiety and depression, and improving social and emotional wellbeing.

The actor explained that he approaches all films he makes "from a standpoint" of "touching a heart."

"I want to help somebody feel something through my work, and that's what I was looking for originally," he said. "Which film was going to touch me the most."

For every view of the winning film "A Dog Can Make a Difference" from October 24 through Veterans Day on November 11, 2024, Purina Dog Chow will donate $5, up to $75,000, to the Association of Service Dog Providers, a coalition of non-profit service dog providers, to help train more PTSD service dogs at no cost to the veterans, the company said in a news release.

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Justin Baldoni on his dog 'Happy' and pets' impact on mental health