All products featured on Vogue are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links.
Sabrina Carpenter was not present when her dogs, 14-year-old Goodwin and 1-year-old Louie, transformed her family’s home into the set of their very own Dogue cover shoot. But even without the pop star on the premises to provide color commentary, it gave her family a whole new perspective on just how exhausting it is to be famous.
“My parents were like, ‘Whoa, we understand this is actually hard work for you,’” Carpenter recounts with a laugh over the phone. “They were like, ‘This was a really long day for the dogs. I don’t know how you do it!’”
Not only did Carpenter’s parents witness a cover shoot, they were active participants—namely her mother, Elizabeth, who commissioned custom Dogue kerchiefs for the occasion. Lo and behold: Goodwin and Louie, doing their best Themla Louise in a white toy Maybach (a nod to Carpenter’s “Manchild” music video). She also helped stylist Lindsey Hartman dress the dogs in starchy Elizabethan collars and tiaras, and, later, the platinum blonde Sabrina-esque wigs they wore to lounge on a twin bed, surrounded by a sea of American Girl dolls. Are they relics of Carpenter’s childhood? “Yeah, unfortunately,” she groans.
Carpenter grew up alongside Goodwin, who is a mixture of Maltese, Lhasa apso, Yorkshire terrier, and long-haired Chihuahua. “They call them Angel Doll pups,” she says. “I mean, they’re literally just mutts, but he is a really special mutt.”
Goodwin joined the family just as a 13-year-old Carpenter—an in-demand child actor, as fans of Girl Meets World know well—booked a Fox pilot about three estranged siblings called The Goodwin Games. The show only lasted for seven episodes, but Goodwin’s name stuck. “You know what?” Carpenter says. “Whatever. I still love the name, and it’ll be a part of my history forever.”
Louie, a one-year-old Cavapoo with a coat of golden brown curls and a white stripe down his belly, is new to the Carpenter crew. But he is already well acquainted with his owner’s superstar lifestyle. Both dogs have joined her on her Short n’ Sweet tour—though they are kept confined. “They wait in my dressing room during the show, so they’ve actually never gotten to see me perform live,” she says, “which sucks for them because I think they’d like it.”
While we await her forthcoming album, Man’s Best Friend, we got the scoop on her pups, Goodwin and Louie. Below, Sabrina Carpenter answers the Dogue questionnaire.
What are your dogs’ best qualities?
This sounds cliché, but their best quality—both of them—is just how genuinely loving and adoring they are. I know this from the past; some dogs are not very nice and not very friendly, and my dogs are sweet little babies. They’re just the nicest, and they love to cuddle.
Who would voice your dogs in a movie?
Goodwin is a very easy answer: Jeff Bridges. Goodwin has always felt like an old man since we got him, and his name sounds like an old man. When I first got Goodwin, I was 13 and I was working on this show for Fox. It was called The Goodwin Games. It got canceled after seven episodes, but I had already named him. You know what? Whatever. I still love the name, and it’ll be a part of my history forever. And Beau Bridges, Jeff Bridges’s brother, [played] my father in that show, so that’s why I always associate him with one of the voices of the Bridges.
For Louie, probably Tom Holland. He’s spunky.
Do you use a special voice to talk to your dogs?
It’s sort of a stupid one. Dogs bring out the real us. Sometimes, when I’m talking to a dog in that way, I’m just like, This is who I’m supposed to be. This is the real me. It’s because we want to be able to know what they sound like so badly that we’re just going to throw out a bunch of options and see if they respond one day.
What are your dogs’ weirdest nicknames, and how did you come up with them?
Goodwin’s alter ego has always been Badwin, which seems pretty self-explanatory. So when he’s not being a good dog, it’s Badwin. For Louie, he’s so new to this earth. When he’s being bad, I call him Lucifer, but most of the time I just call him LouLou.
Where is one place you wish you could take your dogs?
They’re small, so honestly they can go anywhere except for restaurants that don’t allow dogs. I wish I could take them to those.
Where is the strangest place you’ve taken your dogs?
They’ve come on tour before. They wait in my dressing room during the show, so they’ve actually never gotten to see me perform live, which sucks for them because I think they’d like it.
Tour is weird for them because it’s a super-rock-star lifestyle. They come on the bus.
If you could tell your dogs one thing, what would it be?
I would probably ask them if they think I’m an insane person because I’ve always wanted to know that. Do dogs see us running around and doing our human things and think that we’re just really strange? Then I would tell them that I like them better than literally everybody on the planet.
What is the most human thing your dogs do?
This sounds so foo-foo, but Goodwin is really empathetic. He just knows when you’re sick and not feeling well. His eyes are humanlike. He’s got a lot of emotion; he has a lot of stories. Louie’s most humanlike quality would probably be his ears. They’re so attuned. He’s such a good listener. When you call his name, he actually comes to you.
What is the most dog thing your dogs do?
Goodwin ignores me all the time when I call his name. I would say that’s a very dog thing. They get to decide when they want to be your pet and their own pet. Actually, maybe that’s the most human thing about Goodwin.
Louie’s most dog quality would be that the bitch always wants to play. He has so much energy, and he will be bouncing around in two seconds. He’s an Energizer Bunny right now because he’s still a puppy.
What are their full names?
It’s just Goodwin and Louie. They’re like Rihanna—they don’t need a last name.
Astrological signs?
Goodwin is an Aries, and Louie is a Taurus.
Favorite toys?
Goodwin’s soft bear is basically all he can handle. Louie, multiple toys, but mainly anything we throw, he fetches.
Favorite meals?
Other than begging for dinner scraps, Freshpet wet food with some cut-up fresh chicken from Dad.
Worst habits?
Goodwin, going potty where he shouldn’t. He’s old. Maybe he needs doggie Depends. Louie, overstimulation leading to mounting things, including legs.
Strangest habits?
Goodwin grunts when he’s trying to get your attention. Louie spins in circles before he poops.
.png)
