If your dog keeps sniffing you, in the morning, this post will show you why and what you can do about it.
So, why does my dog sniff me in the morning? Likely reasons why your dog sniffs you in the morning are that it wants food and that it is excited to see you.
There are a number of possible reasons why your dog sniffs you in the morning and it might be due to a combination of them. However, there are some things you can consider when figuring out the main cause and there are some things you can do about it.
Why does my dog sniff me in the morning?
Below are a number of possible reasons why your dog sniffs you in the morning and what would make them more likely.
It is smelling for food
If your dog does not sleep with you and it sniffs you when it first sees you, a likely cause is that it is smelling to see if you have food on you. This would be more likely if it stops sniffing you as much after you have fed it. In this case, it could help to feed it earlier than usual.
It is finding out about you
Dogs will sniff people in order to find out about them. Since dogs have a very good sense of smell, they can find out a lot about people by sniffing them such as their health status and who they have been around. If your dog sniffs you when it first sees, it is also likely that your dog is doing it because it is finding out about how you are.
It is excited to see you
Another possible cause is that it is excited to see you. One possible reason why it might be excited to see you could be that it has some separation anxiety. This would be more likely if your dog starts getting anxious when you are leaving it to go to bed at night.
It is expecting to wake up at a certain time
If your dog seems to do it more when you wake up later than usual, the cause could be that your dog is expecting you to get up and feed it at a certain time. This would be more likely if your dog does it more on weekends when you get up later than usual.
It wants you to get up and feed it
If your dog comes and sniffs you while you are still in bed, the cause is likely to be that it wants you to get up and feed it. This would be especially likely if it does it at around the same time that you usually feed it.
Things to consider
Below are some things to consider to help figure out the main reason why your dog has been doing it.
If your dog has always sniffed you in the morning
If your dog did not always sniff you in the morning, it would help to consider what else happened when your dog first started doing it. If it started doing it suddenly, it could be due to things such as if you started getting up later than usual, feeding it at a different time, or because you stopped letting your dog sleep with you.
What is different when it does not sniff you in the morning
If your dog does not always sniff you in the morning, it would also help to consider what is different when it does not sniff you. For example, if it does not sniff you when it can sleep with you, it could be due to separation anxiety. Whereas, if it only does it on the weekend, it could be because you get up later than usual and it wants to be fed.
How to get my dog to stop sniffing me in the morning?
Below are some options you have when dealing with it.
Limit reasons why it might get anxious without you
If it seems like a part of the reason is that it has some separation anxiety, it would help to limit reasons why it might be anxious. Ways to do so would include ensuring that the room it sleeps in is not too loud, warm, or bright.
Feed it sooner
It would also help to try to feed your dog at around the same time each morning. By doing so, your dog should know when it can expect to be fed.
Let it do it
It is common for dogs to sniff their owners in the morning. If your dog has not been behaving unusually in other ways, it would likely be normal behavior. In this case, the easiest option would be to allow your dog to sniff you in the mornings if it wants to.