Courtesy of Michael & Abbey Less Michael and Abbey Less asked their golden retriever, Huckleberry, to "guess" their baby's sex just moments before they opened the envelope The sweet, funny moment, complete with Huckleberry's expressive side-eye, quickly went viral on TikTok, charming pet lovers everywhere For the couple, involving Huckleberry was second nature, as he's always been at the heart of their little family In a now-viral TikTokclip, couple Michael and Abbey Less ask their four-legged best friend Huckleberry to weigh in on whether they're having a boy or a girl before they open the envelope themselves. "We involve him in everything we do, the littlest things," Abbey tells PEOPLE, describing how including the 4-year-old golden retriever in their sex reveal was less of a big decision and more of a natural extension of their daily life. "So it wasn't really a big thought. It was just like, we wanted his opinion." The couple, who have been together for nearly two decades and married for almost 12 years, have always dreamed of having a golden retriever, and Huckleberry has been the heart of their family since he was a puppy. Michael and Abbey's approach to the reveal was intimate and personal as they skipped the big party, opting instead for a quiet moment at home. "We were going to open the envelope and we're like, well let's just ask him one last time I guess and see what he says," Michael recalls. Huckleberry, who had been asked the question a few times before, made his final pick: girl. The video, which features Huckleberry's expressive "side-eye" and a comedic slow zoom that Abbey added in editing, quickly took off online. Courtesy of Michael & Abbey Less For Abbey, Huckleberry's role in their lives goes far beyond viral moments. "Huckleberry truly does everything with us — if I'm ice rolling my face, he wants his turn too. When I'm putting on makeup, he waits patiently for the beauty blender to get rolled on his snout," she shares. "That's why it felt so special to include him in our gender reveal. He's always been part of our little family, and we include him in everything," Abbey adds. The couple's TikTok followers weren't just charmed by Huckleberry's intuition — they also related to the way the Less family treats their dog as a full-fledged member of the household. "A lot of people said, 'Oh my gosh, I thought I was the only one that asked my dog questions and gave them choices,' " Michael shares. As they prepare to welcome their first child, Michael and Abbey are feeling a mix of excitement and nerves. "We really had no intuition whether it was a boy or girl. I felt like our family kept telling us it was a boy," Michael says, recalling the moment they opened the envelope and found out Huckleberry was right. "When we actually opened the envelope, we were just shocked and happy." Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Abbey admits the reality of their growing family hasn't fully sunk in yet. "I feel like for myself, it still doesn't quite feel weird. I've been very lucky and this pregnancy has been super pleasant. We're excited, but definitely nervous for sure. I'm sure intuition will kick in," she notes. Huckleberry, meanwhile, is poised to become the best big brother. "That's one thing I'm excited for, for Huckleberry to have a little one around the house. I just feel like he's going to probably forget about us and only focus on them. But I'm excited for that little connection," Abbey says. Courtesy of Michael & Abbey Less The journey to parenthood has been a long time coming for Michael and Abbey, who have celebrated countless milestones together since high school. "We've been married 12 years now. We've been together for almost 20 years since high school. I feel like now's the time we grow our milestones," Michael reflects. As their family grows, one thing is certain: Huckleberry will continue to be at the center of every milestone, big or small. "With or without social media, he's definitely there on part of it, always," Abbey says. Read the original article onPeople
