Friday evening in Sydney, Johnny Depp's pooches were escorted from their swashbuckling owner's home to the airport, and are en route to California. The flight narrowly evaded the Australian government's deadline requiring the dogs, who had not been quarantined upon entry, to leave the country or else be euthanized, Associated Press reported.
Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce had strong opinions on extending leniency to celebrities on its strict quarantine regulations.
"If you start letting movie stars — even though they've been the sexiest man alive twice — to come into our nation (with pets), then why don't we just break laws for everybody?" Joyce said in a statement on Wednesday.
On Thursday afternoon, fans of dogs not being killed received great news: Johnny Depp's dogs wouold live to see another Pirates movie, and would soon leave Australia on their own private jet.
Agriculture minister Barnaby Joyce, who had earlier threatened to destroy Boo and Pistol for breaching quarantine, told ABC Radio that their scheduled departure was a relief.
The plight of Boo and Pistol spawned a petition, a timer counting down their death, earnest thinkpieces in the media, and a global debate online under the hashtag #WarOnTerrier.
And a story about Australian biosecurity regulations went global. Here's how it was reported around the world. If you don't like puns, look away now.
CNN
The Daily Beast
The Guardian
The Daily Star Lebanon
New York Times
Xinhua News Asia Pacific
News24 South Africa
Jakarta Post
Johnny Depp will be formally interviewed by quarantine officials as they begin their investigations into how Boo and Pistol were smuggled in to the country.
