Tears as Senior Dog Struggles to Greet Dad Every Night After Work

A senior dog waiting patiently for her owner to come home from work every night is breaking hearts on TikTok.

In a video shared by Rachel (@anxious.dog.mom) on January 8, Daisy can be seen struggling to stand up in her owners' garage while she waits for her "dad" to return.

Seeing her wobble, Rachel places her hands on Daisy's sides to support her. Despite the weakness in her legs, the 13-year-old turns into a puppy the moment she sees her dad in his cop car. She trots over to him for cuddles, following him around the car while he locks up for the evening.

Captioned "This is probably the most favorite part of her day," the video has received over 370,000 views and almost 75,000 likes.

How Does My Dog Know What Time I'll Be Home?

Does your dog wait by the door for you at 5:30 p.m. on the dot? If you've ever wondered how your pooch knows when you'll be home, dog trainer Leigh Siegfried has the answer.

The CEO and founder of Opportunity Barks said it's down to four things:

• Routine
• Visual cues
• Scent
• Sound

"Routines within the household and environmental cues—for example, the timing of the mailperson—can be a big predictor for dogs," Siegfried told Newsweek.

"Cracked windows or drafts near doors can leave cues of incoming scent that will be predictive for a dog [of] an owner's return.

"While tires on pavement or gravel, rolling into a driveway seem to be the biggest for this hound and his owner's homecoming."

However, Siegfried said there are some things that our canine companions seem to understand that we can't explain.

"I believe dogs are really tuned in to timing—the positions of the sun in the sky or things that occur that predict the arrival of a person as a dog that may appear to 'know what time it is,'" she said.

"As the dog usually predicts the return of the human before these other cues come into play—sight, smell or sound!"

'I'm Bawling'

As soon as Daisy spots her dad's car pulling into the drive, she begins to bark, before dashing over to him as quickly as her legs will allow her, tail wagging.

"Even being as sick as she is, she still loves to greet her Dada every night when he gets home," Rachel wrote alongside the emotional footage.

Rachel and her husband Gene adopted Daisy as a puppy 13 years ago. A young Daisy was a "troublemaker," but also playful and curious. Over the years, the couple added more rescue dogs to the family, which big sister Daisy "tolerated."

"She was grumpy about it," Rachel told Newsweek. "She was very sweet to humans and enjoyed belly rubs."

Although Daisy was a "mama's girl," she liked to follow her dad all over the place.

"[Towards the end] I spent so much time giving her meds and caring for her boo-boo's so I was probably the bad mama in her eyes," she said.

When Gene swapped from the night to the day shift, Daisy started greeting him when he came home from work.

"He would send me a text and let me know he was almost home and we'd wait for him to pull up," Rachel said. "We did this for a few months up until she passed away."

Sadly, Daisy developed chronic pancreatitis, and despite the couple and their vet's efforts, Daisy died in Rachel's arms a few weeks ago.

"The tiktok was actually taken 3 days before she passed," she said.

"I put the music in because you could hear my sniffling and crying in the background."

The sweet scene made TikTok users teary-eyed, with user leah.jordan commenting: "True love."

"What could even top that welcome home," said greenwings.

"They are pure love and loyalty," wrote Cines Haidar.

Unfortunately, Daisy has since passed away, with TikTok users heartbroken by the news.

"This is the only bad part of having a furry friend. The good bye," said Sara Arnold.

"I'm bawling," wrote BullyBreedMommy.

"So very sorry for your loss," said Tessa. "Her paw will forever dance gently in your hearts."

While Lexie commented: "[Losing] a pet is hard but you have made memories that stay forever."

Rachel and her husband aren't the only ones helping senior canines to live their best lives. A family went viral after adopting a 15-year-old shelter dog so she can enjoy her "final days," while an 18-year-old, visually-impaired rescue pooch stuck in a corner recently melted hearts on Reddit.

Newsweek has asked Rachel for comment.

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.

Update 01/20/22 12:09 p.m. E.T.: This article was updated to include more information from @anxious.dog.mom.