Huckleberry, the sweet golden retriever, loves climbing onto the roof of his Austin home. This unusual hobby made him a local celebrity.
Huck (short for Huckleberry) is a 10-year-old Golden Retriever born on Christmas day. He absolutely loves greeting people in the neighborhood from the roof of his Austin home. Huck was named after Mark Twain’s “Huckleberry Finn.” He lives with owners Allie and Justin Lindenmuth.
“Huckleberry definitely lives up to his name … loveable and mischievous,” Allie told people about her dog’s personality. After the Lindenmuth family had lived in their current Austin home for over a year, Huck began to reveal his mischievous side.
“Huck discovered he could jump from the hill in our backyard onto the roof,” Allie explained. “There was no going back after that. He loves it up there.”
Huck’s pet parents began allowing supervised visits to the top of the house after seeing how much he loved watching the neighbors from the roof. These visits are now routine.
“We only allow him outside when we are home, or he would be up there all day. With his old age, we have since built him a little ramp, so he does not hurt his hips getting up there,” Allie shared.
Huck has developed quite a following of local and internet admirers throughout the years of his roof visits. The dog’s Instagram account, @HucktheRoofDog, has almost 44,000 followers.
“We started an Instagram because many people would come to our door and ask to learn more about Huck. We never thought it would grow so popular,” Allie said, adding that it is still common for local drivers to make a U-turn “to confirm they, in fact, saw a dog on the roof.”
Huck is loved in the neighborhood. People know where to look for him on the roof. But, “new neighbors and passersby still come up to the door weekly” to meet Huckleberry for the first time. The Lindenmuths are happy to allow him to continue mesmerizing the view from the roof knowing how happy it makes him.
“He just loves watching all the neighbors pass by. He has an amazing view of Austin from up there. I truly think he thinks it is just an extension of the backyard. He barks at all his neighbor friends to say, ‘Hi!” she said.
Besides ruling the roof, Huck enjoys swimming and cuddling in his spare time. Allie says, “Huck is the sweetest pup. He could be snuggled all day long and has never met a stranger,” She adds that he is an overprotective and loving dog and that he wishes to be around humans all day long.
