That's Ruff: Kathie Lee Gifford a "Wreck" After Dropping Puppy on Today Show

Cohost phones in to show day after dog took a tumble; animal-lover says she's a "wreck" after the unfortunate incident

By Gina Serpe Oct 12, 2012 7:37 PMTags

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Morning TV has always been a dog-eat-dog world. But yesterday on the Today show, it was a puppy-dropping one.

During a feel-good segment on puppy adoption, Kathie Lee Gifford made a reach for one of the energetic pooches.

"Oh, puppy needs a bath-y," she began, picking up the wriggling pup before losing her grip, resulting in the dog taking a head-first tumble onto the floor.

"Puppy took a nose dive-y," her cohost Hoda Kotb was quick to reply.

While the adorable four-legged friend seemed to take the incident in stride, the encounter clearly stuck with Kathie Lee, who phoned in to an earlier hour of the Today show this morning to explain what happened.

"The puppy's OK, but I'm a wreck!" she said. "It's very upsetting for me. I have three dogs of my own and I adore dogs, but I have realized what the problem was...The problem is that the dog did not want to go home with Hoda."

Meanwhile, Hoda, who was also present on the call, added in her own version of events.

"I was terrified for that dog when it took that kamikaze dive away from Kathie Lee. She also claimed it was because he smelled funny."

Well, we may never get to the bottom of this one—but there is one thing we know for sure: Al Roker knows how to get the best last word.

His take on the situation: "Kathie Lee dropped her like a box of wine." Oh, Al.

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