Why does my dog lay on my feet? If you have a dog at home, you must have experienced a typical behavior of dogs that they sit or lay on your feet.
Whether you have taken a break while walking with him in the park or you are resting in your lounge, he just curls up on your feet and keeps laying there.
As a curious dog owner, you may have questioned why does my dog lay on my feet? Is it a particular sleeping habit in dogs? Is there any specific reason behind this? Does this have anything to do with the instincts?
No matter what your queries are, we have got you covered with 7 interesting reasons behind this behavior of dogs!
Pet cuddles feel very heartwarming and tell us a lot about their feelings. Let’s take a look at why your dog cuddles at your feet!
Why Do Dogs Lay, Sit, and Sleep on Your Feet?
There are many reasons for dogs to love your feet. It can be a way of showing affection or just out of their natural instincts. It is often attributed to as comfort.
There is usually a reason behind every canine behavior. Let’s dive in deeper to know more about what causes your dog to follow you and keep your feet company.
Laying on the feet is a normal option but laying in the sun is a normal option too?
1) Natural Canine Instinct:
Naturally, canines appear to be pack animals. That means they live, travel, and hunt in packs. While it is difficult to think of domesticated dogs to be as “pack animals” but they do have some instinctual inherited traits.
When pack animals take a break while traveling, the leader of the pack first chooses a place to lay and others simply gather around for protection and warmth.
Your chihuahuas who have never spent a day in the wild can still show the behaviors of their wild, pack ancestors. In your home, your dog may perceive you as a pack leader.
Sitting and laying on your feet can be an inherited instinct. Your feet may feel a comfortable spot for him for resting. This is their way of expressing respect and loyalty to their owner.
2) They Feel Safe Laying on Your Feet:
Do you remember when you were a child, you used to stay behind a trusted person in the crowd. Similarly, our furry pets feel secure with their trusted guardians. Whenever our pups feel uneasy, they just try to lean on our feet so that we protect them and keep them in our sight.
With this pack nature, they believe that you will protect them or calm them when they are feeling nervous. Usually, it happens when your companion experiences a new situation in his daily routine.
Also, when dogs are sleeping, they feel very exposed and unguarded. If your dog chooses to sleep on your feet, it may be due to the fear of the surrounding. The touch of your feet can bring him all the comfort to sleep.
3) The Territorial Behavior:
Just like we own our pets, dogs are extremely devoted to their owners. Territorial behavior is a method used by dogs and cats to claim their territory and to keep away other dogs.
Sometimes, you will notice your dog be staying very close to you in public. This is their way of telling other dogs to stay away from you. You can take this as a compliment from your dog to be the best guardian.
This behavior is acceptable until your dog is not violent. Some dogs become very attached to their owners that they hurt others who try to come close to their owners.
Not everyone coming near to us is dangerous, so if you feel that your dog is being aggressive at times, you must speak with a pet behavioral trainer.
4) To Show Dominance:
Dogs show excitement when they see the person they love. If you are among a group of people or pets, your dog might jump over your lap or just stick to your feet to let everyone know that you only belong to them.
People observe this behavior in their old dogs when they bring some new or guest pets home. You can assess your dog’s overall behavior to know whether he is displaying dominance or he simply loves sitting on your feet.
5) To Guard You as Their Alpha Pack:
It’s a dog fact that they tend to protect their territory. Sitting between your feet can be due to the fact they want to keep you safe.
Again, it is normal behavior until they don’t harm anyone near you out of aggression. To keep yourself and your dogs out of any risky situations, you should train their habits.
6) To Show Affection:
Keep all other reasons aside, sometimes it happens only because your dog really loves you. They tap on your feet because they admire you and just want to be close to you.
We happened to be the only family our pets have so all they need is to cuddle. If you respond to him with more love, he will be likely to remember your emotions.
We have also seen that dogs keep sitting near their guardians when they feel low or tired.
7) To Seek Warmth:
In the colder seasons, our fluffy friends cuddle more to share some of our body heat. They cannot grab a blanket themselves if they feel cold so, they are more likely to huddle up in your body to stay warm. You are their very own heat source.
Smaller breeds such as Chihuahuas, and Shih Tzus need more warmth than other dogs. Cuddling with you makes them feel warm and comfortable on chilly nights.
Should You Encourage This Behavior?
Resting in your feet is not a troubling habit of your dog. Most of us enjoy cuddles by our fluffy friends. If you show affection to your dog, he will also return the favors.
But if your pups show any type of aggression, or you don’t like your dog to keep laying on your feet all the time, you can surely stop their behavior.
How to Stop Your Dog from Laying on Your Feet?
There are a few ways you can try to control the behavior of your dogs.
1) Never Pat While They Lay on Your Feet:
Patting your dogs while they are doing something, encourages them to retain the behavior. Instead of showing them comfort, try to refrain from patting.
When they try to lay on your feet, offer them something else like moving them to their bed. You can also keep their bed near you so that they don’t feel uncomfortable.
2) Use Positive Reinforcement Method:
The positive reinforcement method is used in behavior training. In this method, individuals are rewarded when they do something good.
You can give your dog a nice treat when he chooses his bed to lay down and sleep. Following this method for some time will give your dog a signal to do more of this act to get the reward.
Why Does My Dog Lay on My Feet? Conclusion:
Overall, this is an adorable action shown by your dog. It is a way for your pups to show how much they love you. By sitting on your feet, they want to tell you that how good a caretaker or a pack leader you are.
Until this behavior is not accompanied by any unwanted or harmful acts, it is a normal way for our dogs to show their love, warmth, and care.
However, if your dog show aggressiveness in some situations you should speak to a professional trainer to ensure everyone’s safety.
