Ellen DeGeneres Shares Photo Cuddling With Dog Wally After Testing Positive for Coronavirus

Ellen DeGeneres thanked fans for their support after she announced she tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday. The Ellen DeGeneres Show host cuddled up with her dog Wally in the new photo. DeGeneres said she plans to take a break from filming for the rest of the year and follow guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Thank you for all of your sweet messages. They’re helping a lot. Wally is helping too,” DeGeneres wrote on Instagram. The accompanying photo showed DeGeneres curled up with her dog and wearing pajamas. The post earned thousands of comments from DeGeneres’ fans and famous followers. “Feel better soon,” Kyle Richards wrote. “Stay positive! My parents are in their late 70’s and kicked it,” one fan shared. “Was worried but they did well considering.”

Back on Thursday, the 63-year-old comedian revealed she tested positive for COVID-19. “Fortunately, I’m feeling fine right now,” she wrote. “Anyone who has been in close contact with me has been notified, and I am following all proper CDC guidelines. I’ll see you all again after the holidays. Please stay safe.”

The Ellen DeGeneres Show has been filming in the studio since it returned for its 2020-2021 season in September. The production put safety protocols in place, but she began allowing a limited studio audience in October. Her celebrity guests have visited the studio in person, although some have joined the show virtually. A spokesperson for Telepictures, the studio behind DeGeneres’ show, told CNN repeat episodes will air until production resumes in January.

The coronavirus diagnosis comes at a difficult moment for her show, which is trying to recover from a summer of negative stories about a toxic workplace environment behind the scenes. Three senior producers were fired following an investigation from Warner Bros. DeGeneres did touch on the subject during her season premiere in September, and vowed to start a “new chapter” on the show. “I take responsibility for what happens at my show,” she said in part. “This is The Ellen DeGeneres Show. I am Ellen DeGeneres.”

Earlier this week, a current employee told BuzzFeed News the show and its digital content were attracting fewer advertisers and sponsors in the wake of the scandal, The employee said staffers have not been able to produce enough new content lately because of the decrease in advertising dollars, so new projects have been slow and they are recycling old clips. Ellen usually has a big month in December with the “12 Days of Giveaways” segments, and an employee said the gifts have not been as great as previous years’ promotions. This year, all gifts were being given to frontline workers and families hurt by the coronavirus.