Chelsea Houska celebrates a new birthday

HGTV / YouTube

Cole DeBoer & Chelsea Houska

Former Teen Mom 2 star and current HGTV host Chelsea Houska has always been an animal lover. Just last week, on February 13th, she and her husband Cole welcomed their fourth Scottish Highland Miniature Cow, Henry, into their home.

In her Instagram story from February 19th, Houska took a moment to express her disbelief that her and DeBoer’s HGTV series Down Home Fab is airing the Season 1 finale this Monday, February 20, but she also took a moment to celebrate the birthday of one of the many dogs in her family. “Phil is 9 too!!! Old man,” Houska wrote over a photo of the black and white spotted Great Dane.

Fans are impressed with Chelsea Houska’s dog training

A fan shared a screenshot of Houska’s birthday post for Phil a “Teen Mom” Reddit forumand other users marveled in the comments that Phil is still a happy and healthy dog.

“This is really impressive. Our big boys/girls developed bone cancer around the 8 year mark,” wrote one fan.

“Good for a Dane! [If I recall correctly,] their lifespan is about eight years. Happy birthday good boy,” noted another user.

“Aww happy birthday good boy ❤️ I LOVE giant breeds but I don’t think I could ever have one again. They’re absolutely wonderful to live with, especially when you have kids, but watching them grow old and deteriorate is probably the saddest thing I’ve ever done,” added a third fan.

According to the American Kennel ClubGreat Danes have a relatively short life expectancy in comparison other dog breeds, which lives an average of eight to 10 years, which means Phil is right in that range. There are several conditions common to the breed that contribute to this shorter lifespan, including bloat (which causes the stomach to twist and cut off the blood supply), cardiomyopathy (a disease that causes the heart to enlarge), joint and Bone disorders (which can limit mobility and lead to quality of life issues) and thyroid problems (which can be monitored and regulated by veterinarians).

“Down Home Fab” has been up and down in ratings

Ahead of the Down Home Fab finale, HGTV shared a photo the message that started it all. On March 1, 2020, Houska contacted the network via an Instagram direct message to say, “I feel like HGTV is missing out on quality television by not following our home building adventures 😂 We’re ready to make the transition from MTV, whenever you’re like lol!” The rest is history, as Houska and DeBoer soon after landed a show on the network that premiered in January 2023.

Accordingly US TV Database, ratings for “Home Town Fab” have steadily increased over the first three weeks of its airing, starting on premiere night on January 16 with 678,000 and on January 30 with 878,000 viewers. After that third episode, however, ratings declined, falling to 700,000 viewers in week four before recouping some of their lost audience in week five with 763,000 viewers tuning in to the February 13 episode.

While it remains to be seen if the season finale will win back more of those lost viewers, it’s already been decided that Houska and DeBoer will get a second season, as HGTV shared a clip of the pair reacting to the mid-season renewal news until the first season aired.

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