A golden retriever who was nowhere to be seen in his owner’s apartment was found living his best possible life out on their balcony.
Coby West, or Coby for short, came into Alyssa West’s life just after she answered an advert from an American Kennel Club breeder on Craigslist in August of 2019. She had just moved to San Diego when the world, as she puts it, “kinda shut down.”
“I always wanted a golden retriever my whole life and knew his name would be Coby,” West told Newsweek. “His name was validated for me when the iconic Kobe Bryant passed because I brought Coby home a month later. Kinda seemed like it was meant to be in a way.”
Coby is a fan of all the things you would expect a dog to be. He loves snuggles, playing fetch and going for walks on the beach. He’s got a few pet peeves too.
mrcobywest
“Coby isn’t a fan of barking dogs,” West said. “Our neighbor’s dog is a yapper and Coby just stares at him in disgrace. He also doesn’t like small dogs too much in general, but he’s going to have to when he receives a little brother one day. Other than that, Coby is just a lover.”
If there’s one thing Coby likes more than anything, it’s catching the sun. “Coby has always loved the sunshine,” West said. “He’s a California boy, of course he does. His mommy also loves the sunshine so it’s just kind of always been something we do together.”
That has its obvious benefits for West when it comes to physical activity.
A 2022 study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine laid bare the benefits of even moderate regular exercise. Researchers found that 11 minutes a day of moderate-intensity physical activity such as a brisk walk was enough to reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and several cancers.
That’s not to say that Coby’s love of the sunshine always encourages activity, as West’s roommate recently discovered.
She returned home and quickly noticed Coby was not in one of his “normal spots” around the house. Turning her camera on, she quickly began to explore the apartment for where he might be. She quickly discovered, to her audible surprise, that he was out on the balcony catching some rays on a sun lounger.
Though the discovery took her by surprise, West was less shocked. “He loves the sunshine and always has. Every place he has lived, he has had a balcony and will be in the sunshine all the time. Nothing has changed there,” she said. “He begs to go outside on his balcony everyday.”
West ended up sharing the footage of Coby’s sunbathing antics to TikTok under the handle mrcobywest, where it quickly garnered attention and racked up an impressive 3.6 million views.
Judging from the comments, Coby’s sunchasing is not out of the ordinary for a golden retriever. One viewer said it was “such a golden thing to do,” with another claiming it was “how they recharge their zoomies.”
His sunbathing is just one of the reasons why West considers Coby “the best roommate” and a canine companion for life. “He provides the house with so much love and joy,” she said. “We also get fur confetti everywhere to remind us all of the perfect boy that lives with us.”
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.