After trotting around the globe, a certain famous Chihuahua named Bubbles has planted her paws in Mt. Lebanon. Alongside her famous dad, actor Joe Manganiello, she has traveled to nearly 20 countries and hundreds of cities — and she has the European Union passport to prove it.
Since being adopted six years ago, Bubbles has become a world traveler, even picking up an Irish boyfriend along the way. Her thousands of fans follow her adventures on Instagram at @bubblesmanganiello. She has strolled the cobblestone streets of Galway, explored ancient monasteries in Armenia and even helped “hold up” the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
But this year, the 12-year-old Bubbles is embarking on her biggest journey yet: braving a Western Pennsylvania winter.
Manganiello and his fiancée, fellow actor Caitlin O’Connor, have returned to their roots with a move back to Mt. Lebanon. For Bubbles — a beach girl who “loves the sand” — trading California sunshine for snow may be her greatest adventure so far.
“She’s breaking in all her new puffy coats her parents got her for Christmas,” O’Connor said. “She’s enjoying the neighborhood smells and is trying to acclimate to the snow, but she’s having a hard time finding the right amount of grass during the winter.”
“Bubbles loves to walk around the neighborhood, and as soon as winter is over, she’ll be back on her normal long-walk routine — ready to bark at any passing Mt. Lebanon dog who will listen,” O’Connor joked.
As for Manganiello and O’Connor, they are happy to be back in Western Pennsylvania and closer to family.
“Everyone has been so nice and inviting,” said O’Connor, who is originally from Uniontown. She described their neighbors as “kind and warm,” noting that they’ve brought over cookies and invited the trio to a neighborhood block party.
Bubbles keeps her family on their toes no matter where they are. Between morning and evening walks, paw-cleaning time, face-kissing time, breakfast time, snack time, dinner time, more snack time and, of course, copious naps in between, her schedule is packed.
“Bubbles knows when it’s 5 p.m. anywhere in the world, regardless of jet lag and intercontinental time zones,” Manganiello said. “She knows her eating times and will let you know if you’re late.”
However, Bubbles’ high-flying life as a world traveler wouldn’t have been possible without a chance meeting at an adoption event for Dogs Without Borders, a Los Angeles-based rescue.
“She fell in love with Joe when she met him,” O’Connor said. After asking to be picked up, Bubbles stayed in his lap for the entire event and didn’t want to move.
Bubbles had been surrendered because of a cyst believed to be cancerous and because she was peeing blood. No one was willing to adopt a dog who appeared so ill, and she was in danger of being euthanized.
Manganiello said he felt compelled to keep her. “Although she wasn’t meant to be my pet, she chose me.”
He stayed by her side through two surgeries and nursed Bubbles back to health. In return, he gained a fierce champion who loves him unconditionally.
“The past six years with her have filled my heart with so much love,” Manganiello said.
The star-studded pooch was most recently seen alongside her dad on NBC’s “Clear the Shelters” TV special, a nationwide pet adoption campaign that aired in August 2025. Together, they promoted the importance of adopting from animal shelters.
“Dogs know when you save them, and they show you so much love in return,” Manganiello said. “It might very well be the best thing I’ve ever done in my life. People who have rescued a dog know the love of an appreciative pet — it’s magical.”
Bubbles is fiercely protective of her dad. At the last Pirates game she attended, she bit the Pirate Parrot mascot in the face. Manganiello joked that she was expressing her displeasure with the current state of Pirates ownership.
“She wants a better team around Paul Skenes!” he said.
Editor’s note: Interested in rescuing a dog or cat? Animal Friends is located at the Caryl Gates Gluck Resource Center, 562 Camp Horne Road, Building 1, Pittsburgh, PA 15237; call 412-847-7000 or email speak@thinkingoutsidethecage.org. Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh is located at 1101 Western Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15233; call 412-345-7300.
