When country starBrantley Gilbertfirst saw his dog, Alley, more than a decade ago, he thought she was a malnourished puppy.
The singer was playing at a bar in south Georgia when he noticed “this beautiful dog” in the parking lot. “Her markings were gorgeous,” Gilbert, 34, tells PEOPLE for this week’sSexiest Man Alive issue. “People were getting ready to come inside and she was kind of hanging around, I guess because people had been giving her [food].”
Gilbert also noticed a man throwing beer bottles at Alley. “We had … let’s call it a conversation,” he recalls with a laugh. “After that she ran right up to me in the alley, so that’s what I named her, and she’s been with me ever since.”
Heather Hazzan
Rescuing Alley was a no-brainer for the singer. After their show, “we took her back to the hotel room and snuck her in,” Gilbert says. “We went and bought all the flea and tick stuff, and washed her three or four times. I put her in the bed on the floor, but when I woke up, she was in the bed with me, and I was covered in fleas.”
Gilbert’s photo shoot with Alley at home in October for this year’s Sexiest Man Alive issue became a day that he will always cherish.
“When PEOPLE invited me to be photographed with Alley, we had just found out she had cancer,” he explains. “Sadly she passed away shortly after, but I do believe all dogs go to heaven and I know our sweet girl is there now.”
For more on the Sexiest Man Alive – and all the hottest guys in Hollywood – clickhereand pick up this week’s issue, on stands Friday, Nov. 15!
source: people.com
