Mark Consuelos Claims He Would Rather Be in a 'Loveless Marriage' With Wife Kelly Ripa Than Lose 'Custody' of Their Dog

Mark Consuelos confessed he would rather stay in an unhappy marriage with his wife, Kelly Ripa, than lose time with their beloved pup, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

The playful topic came up during the Tuesday, August 11, episode of Live With Mark and Kelly, as the pair discussed a new bill in Pennsylvania that would count pets as family members in divorces and other legal issues. If passed, the bill would set new rules on "custody arrangements" and "divisions of costs" for animals.

Ripa, 55, gave her husband a pointed look as she read, "It also directs judges to consider factors similar to child custody cases, such as who provides daily care for the pet, or who rescued the pet out of the shelter, and who didn’t want the pet to begin with."

"But who’s up with the pet every time she has diarrhea from, like, 12 o’clock at night ’til seven o’clock in the morning?" Consuelos retorted.

The mother-of-three responded, "The person that didn’t want to adopt her, ’cause that’s how karma works."

Despite Ripa's strong implication that Consuelos was against getting their dog, Lena, whom they adopted in 2021, he made it clear how important the pet was to him now.

"I mean, listen. Let’s just put it this way. I would stay in a loveless marriage just to make sure I could be with Lena every day," he told her. "That’s how much I love Lena."

Ripa dissolved into laughter at his explanation.

"Is that all you’re asking for, is a loveless marriage?" she teased. "Done!"

But Consuelos wasn't finished. He admitted that if they separated and Lena was living with Ripa, he would "stay up at night, wondering what (Lena) is doing."

Ripa quipped back, "Just wondering if there was some other man petting her."

But divorce isn't likely to be on the horizon for the happy couple. Consuelos and Ripa met on the set of All My Children and eloped in Las Vegas in 1996 after roughly one year of dating.

They share three children, Michael, Lola and Joaquin, and are still going strong 30 years later.

However, there is one thing from their wedding day Consuelos regrets – a tattoo.

"I don’t know whose idea that was, but we went straight to get tattoos, and it was a horrible idea," he told guest host Jenna Dewan during an episode of Live With Kelly and Mark that aired earlier this month.

"I’ve since had it covered up with something different here, but I got the tragedy/comedy actors (masks)," he continued. "The smiley face and the angry face. I’m like, oh, my god. It’s so cringey just to think of it."