Jon Stewart dedicated his closing segment to remembering his three-legged dog, Dipper, on Monday.
Choking back tears throughout the tribute, The Daily Show host shared that Dipper had died on Sunday.
“He was ready. He was tired,” Stewart said. “But I wasn’t.”
He said his family were all with Dipper in his final moments. The show’s credits rolled alongside a sweet video of Dipper frolicking in the snow.
Before sharing the news, Stewart recalled visiting an animal shelter in New York City with his young children 12 or 13 years ago to take part in a fundraiser.
They ended up going home with a new family member, who had lost a leg after being hit by a car in Brooklyn, he said.
“They put the dog in my lap, and we left that day feeling really good. We’d helped this great organisation, and we also left with this is one-ish-year-old pitbull,” Stewart said.
“We called him Dipper. And in a world of good boys, he was the best,” he added. “He used to come to The Daily Show every day ... We’d come and tape the show, and Dipper would wait for me to be done.”
He continued: “He met actors and authors and presidents and kings. And he did what the Taliban could not do, which is put a scare into Malala Yousafzai.”
He included a video of the activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate running away from Dipper backstage.
Watch Stewart’s tribute to Dipper below.