"It is with heavy hearts that we announce the unexpected passing of Stella Deux, our beloved basset hound, who became ill at the beginning of this week and was not responsive to treatment," Howling Basset Books, Oldwick, N.J., posted on Instagram. "Stella was such a people lover--as the store mascot, greeting people was her favorite thing to do, and she took her job very seriously. (Even though she did not know how to howl.) Little did we know when we decided to open the store last year that Stella would become such a local celebrity and people would travel especially to see her! She received so many belly rubs from all of you and lived her best life here at the store. She will be greatly missed."
