A Golden Retriever named Wally has stolen hearts online thanks to one very unusual personality trait — he always looks like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Wally recently went viral on TikTok after his owner explained that people constantly ask whether the sweet dog is sad or depressed.
But according to his family, that’s simply Wally being Wally.
His mom said they first brought him home when he was just eight weeks old, and it took only about a day to realize he was a little different from other puppies.
While most young dogs seem to spend their days bouncing off the walls, Wally apparently preferred sitting quietly and looking like he was lost in thought.
“We get a lot of comments about how Wally [might be] depressed,” his owner explained. “Or people [wonder] why he’s so sad all the time.”
She quickly reassured viewers that Wally isn’t actually depressed.
“He has been this way ever since the day we met,” she said.
Even as a tiny puppy, Wally reportedly “had a lot going on.”
Instead of racing around nonstop, he would sit quietly and appear “deep in thought.”
As he got older, his family said Wally became even more in touch with his emotional side and continued needing a little extra affection.
“So when people ask if he’s okay, he’s more than okay,” his mom said. “He just has a lot of feelings.”
She described him as “an old soul trapped in a puppy’s body” and said the family wouldn’t want him any other way.
Naturally, the internet fell completely in love.
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One viewer compared Wally to Eeyore from “Winnie the Pooh,” calling him “the physical embodiment of Eeyore.”
Another joked that maybe Wally had a difficult past life and told his family to be “extra extra nice” to him.
Others simply couldn’t get over how adorable and serious-looking he was.
Some commenters even joked that Wally must be a water sign because of his supposedly huge emotions.
One viewer praised his owners as the perfect family for such a sensitive dog, while another suggested they visit an animal communicator to finally find out what might be going through Wally’s head.
Whatever Wally is thinking about, one thing is obvious — his permanently thoughtful face has made him a star.
And while he may look like the saddest Golden Retriever on the internet, his family insists he’s perfectly happy.
He just has a lot on his mind.