Morgan Wallen’s son, Indigo, is recovering after being bitten in the face by his mother KT Smith’s dog.
“Yesterday, [my dog Legend] bit Indigo in the face and [he] had to have stitches,” Smith — who dated Wallen, 30, from 2017 to 2019 — revealed via her Instagram Story on Monday, June 19. “And we spent yesterday morning at the emergency room, and since then, we have been looking for options, and I just couldn’t bring myself to do what everyone else says and what you’re supposed to do,” which would be to put her dog down.
She went on to note that Legend is not an “aggressive” dog. “He is an angel and I feel like he can read human emotions, and he just wants love and to be pet,” she explained. “If you’re not petting him, he’ll paw [at] you. He’s a great guard dog. He’ll sleep outside the bedroom door at night.”
Rather than force her beloved pet to wear a muzzle around Indigo — or choose a more extreme option — Smith asked her nearly 400,000 Instagram followers to help her find Legend a new home in the Nashville area.
“I can’t be a mom that keeps a dog in the house when my child is also traumatized, probably, from that,” she tearfully shared. “I can’t be a good dog mom to him keeping a muzzle on him or a good mom in general having a kid just really scared of him in the home.”
Smith continued: “I just ask for a home that will love him and adore him and give him the attention he needs and loves.”
In a subsequent Instagram Story post, she added that she doesn’t care about the hate she may received from fans about her decision. In response to a user who wrote, “OH NO YOU CARE MORE ABOUT THE F—KING DOG THAN YOUR KID? What’s wrong with you,” Smith replied, “To be a mom is to care about your child first, and find the dog a home away from your kid before they come back into the home. To be a dog mom is to find the best possible home for the dog knowing that they can thrive in an environment that is meant for them without children.”
Smith continued: “We are all triggered by different things in life, and with dogs it’s the same. As humans, we take out those triggers and work through them. Dogs are the same.”
The Nashville native proceeded to give an update on her son’s condition, sharing, “Indigo is OK. His scar will be [minimal]. He did have stitches, but he’ll be OK.”
Later on Monday, Smith shared that she had dropped Legend off “with the sweetest family where he will be living out his full potential and best life on a farm.”
Smith and Wallen welcomed their son in July 2020, one year after their split. “Yesterday was nothing short of complete bliss… ✨♥️,” Smith captioned hospital pics of herself and her newborn via Instagram at the time. “Indie Wilder you are your mama’s answered prayer times infinity and the cutest little human ham hunk I’ve ever laid eyes on.”
Wallen, for his part, gushed in an Instagram post of his own that becoming a first-time father made him a “changed man” following a string of controversies. “I’ll be the Dad you deserve as well as the co-parent your mother deserves. Since you were born, I know that every decision I make will be with you in mind,” he captioned a photo of himself holding Indigo. “I promise I’ll always protect you, and do my best to be an example of a good, godly man just like my daddy was for me.”
The “Whiskey Glasses” singer has been through a handful of ups and downs over the past few years. Two months before Indigo’s birth, the country artist was arrested in May 2020 for public intoxication and disorderly conduct. Later that year, he was cut as the musical guest of an October episode of Saturday Night Live after breaking the show’s COVID-19 protocols.
The drama continued in February 2021 when videos resurfaces of Wallen using the N-word. Several months later — which led to him being banned from several awards shows and dropped from country radio stations — he addressed the scandal on Good Morning America.
“I was around some of my friends, and we just … we say dumb stuff together,” he said in July 2021. “And it was— in our minds, it’s playful — that sounds ignorant, but that’s really where it came from … and it’s wrong.”
Earlier this year, the “Chasin’ You” artist received criticism for canceling an April concert minutes before taking the stage. He later explained via Instagram that he had lost his voice and was “unable to sing.” Following advice from doctors, he went on to cancel six weeks of shows due to vocal fold trauma and a torn leg muscle.
Wallen announced on June 6 that he was cleared to sing again but didn’t specify when his next performance would be.
