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Chottu, the Labrador who rose to fame through the YouTube channel Mr Chottu, died in the early hours of January 31 after a prolonged illness. He was eight and a half years old.
His owners, Sundar and Aishwarya, announced his death in an emotional 26-minute video titled “Chottu, Forever in Hearts”, uploaded on Wednesday, February 4.
Chottu joined the family in 2017. Sundar said he had gifted the puppy to Aishwarya three months after their marriage.
The Mr Chottu YouTube channel, which has around 3.69 lakh subscribers, is known for its family vlogs and pet-centric content, with Chottu featuring in most of its videos.
In the video, the couple said Chottu had been known to followers as a healthy and energetic dog. However, he began showing signs of illness with a fever on January 5. They initially took him to their regular veterinary doctor, where he was given an injection and asked to wait for three days.
As his condition did not improve, Chottu was taken to a veterinary hospital in Vepery, Chennai, on January 14. Blood tests revealed that his platelet count had dropped to 30,000. The normal platelet count in dogs is around five lakh.
According to the couple, medication was administered to increase his platelet count, which later rose to two lakh. However, the fever persisted.
Doctors suspected tick fever and treated him accordingly, but subsequent tests ruled out the infection. By January 26, Chottu’s platelet count had further improved to 2.38 lakh, though the fever continued, the couple said.
Soon after, Chottu began vomiting and stopped eating. He was taken again to the Vepery hospital. When he later passed no motion, he was shifted to a nearby 24×7 veterinary hospital, where doctors managed his condition temporarily.
“However, on January 30, Chottu’s condition worsened drastically. He developed a high fever of 109 degrees and had breathing difficulties. Doctors told us that his liver had been damaged, likely due to the high dosage of medicines administered during treatment,” Sundar said in the video.
Aishwarya also spoke about her final moments with Chottu. She said she spoke to him softly and pleaded with him not to suffer, or make them suffer.
“Chottu, why are you doing this? Why are you struggling and making us struggle as well? Do you want your mother to cry? Don’t make me cry,” she said.
Shortly afterwards, Chottu stopped breathing and was declared dead at 12.30 am on January 31. The family buried him on their land in Minjur.
The announcement video crossed around 2.5 lakh views within 18 hours, with thousands of viewers expressing grief and condolences in the comments.
Sundar and Aishwarya said they would make further announcements about the channel later. They also said they were planning to meet Chottu’s fans during his 16th-day death ceremony.