A golden retriever was delighted to see her dad had come home, but she really didn’t want to get off the couch to show him that.
Dev Erlich, an attorney based in New Jersey, adores her dog Skylar. “I’ve wanted a golden retriever ever since I was a little girl, so getting Skylar was a dream come true,” she told Newsweek.
Making that dream a reality was far from straightforward, though. It started with the search to find a responsible breeder. “There is a big issue where too many dogs end up in shelters. A contributing factor to that is backyard breeders who use poor breeding practices and bring dogs into this world with health and temperament issues that can be avoided had they bred responsibly,” Erlich said.
“Many of those dogs end up in shelters, being rehomed or causing unnecessary stress and heartache to their families,” she added.
Erlich spent countless hours learning how to find a responsible breeder and ultimately drove eight hours to pick up the dog she would come to know as Skylar. To this day, she considers that careful process the “best decision I ever made.”
“Skylar is that perfect golden retriever everyone dreams of,” Erlich said. “She loves to train, play ball, swim, hike, chew a bone and, of course, cuddle—honestly, she’s always really down to do just about anything.”
But, while Skylar is happy to do “just about anything,” she is also conscious of prioritizing her own needs when it comes to all things self-care.
Skylar’s sleep is a good example of that. Research published in the journal Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews found that dogs require anywhere between 7.7 and 16 hours of sleep a day, depending on size and breed.
Erlich said she isn’t sure how much Skylar sleeps, but she knows that, come 8:30 p.m. most nights, her golden retriever “doesn’t want to get up.”
“After a certain time of night, she gets extra lazy and doesn’t want to move,” Erlich said. “The girl needs her beauty sleep.”
That left Skylar facing something of a dilemma when her dad came home from work. It was a dilemma Erlich captured on camera, with the resulting footage shared to her TikTok @skylars.the.limitt.
Skylar loves her dad, though she doesn’t necessarily show it in the way some more excitable dogs might. “Thankfully, Skylar doesn’t get separation anxiety, so I wouldn’t say she actively misses her dad when he’s not home,” Erlich said. “But, if I say his name, she definitely perks up and looks for him, especially when she knows he’s due to come home soon.”
That day was a little different, though. Dad had come home late from work and, try as she might, Skylar couldn’t muster the energy to go and greet him as he came through the front door.
In her defense, Skylar had a great spot on the couch and looked supremely comfortable. She did find a way of letting him know she cared, though, by excitedly wagging her tail as he came into the room.
Skylar’s response did the trick, raising a laugh and smile between mom and dad while letting them know she had no plans to move. “It was a funny moment,” Erlich said. “I just hope it makes people smile and see Skylar’s sweet personality.”
Mission accomplished on both fronts.
TikTok/skylars.the.limitt