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 13, she and her husband Cole welcomed their fourth Miniature Scottish Highland cow, Henry, into their home.
In her February 19 Instagram story, Houska took a moment to share her disbelief that her and DeBoer’s HGTV series “Down Home Fab” is airing its first season’s finale this Monday, February 20, but she also took a moment to celebrate the birthday of one of her family’s multiple dogs. “Also Phil is 9!!! Old man,” Houska wrote over a photo of the black-and-white spotted Great Dane.
Fans Are Impressed With Chelsea Houska’s Dog Raising
One fan shared a screenshot of Houska’s birthday post for Phil to a “Teen Mom” Reddit forum, and other users marveled in the comments about how Phil is still a happy and healthy dog.
“That’s really impressive. Our big boys/girls developed bone cancer around the 8 year mark,” one fan wrote.
“Good for a Dane! [If I recall correctly,] their lifespan is about eight years. Happy birthday, good boy”, another user remarked.
“Aww happy birthday good boy ❤️ I LOVE giant breeds but don’t think I could ever have one again. They’re absolutely wonderful to live with, especially if you have kids, but watching them get old and deteriorate is probably the saddest thing I’ve ever done,” a third fan added.
According to the American Kennel Club, Great Danes have relatively short life expectancies when compared to that of other dog breeds, living an average of eight to ten years, meaning Phil is right within that range. There are several conditions common in the breed that contribute to this shorter lifespan, including bloat (which causes the stomach to twist and cut off blood supply), cardiomyopathy (a disease which leads to the enlargement of the heart), joint and bone disease (which can limit mobility and lead to issues with the quality of life), 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 of the message that started it all. On March 1, 2020, Houska contacted the network through an Instagram direct message to say “I feel like HGTV is missing out on some quality TV by not following our home building adventures 😂 we’re ready to make the transition from MTV whenever you guys are lol!” The rest is history, as Houska and DeBoer landed a show on the network soon after, which premiered in January 2023.
According to US TV Database, the ratings for “Home Town Fab” have grown steadily over the first three weeks of airing, starting on the January 16 premiere night at 678,000 and peaking on January 30 with 878,000 viewers. After this third episode, however, ratings took a dip, falling in week four to 700,000 viewers before making up a bit of their lost audience in week five with 763,000 viewers tuning into the February 13 episode.
While it remains to be seen if the season finale will win back more of those lost viewers, it has already been decided that Houska and DeBoer will get a second season, as HGTV shared a clip of the couple reacting to their season two renewal news halfway through the first season’s airing.
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