Why does my Labrador lay on me?

If your Labrador keeps laying on you, this post will show you a number of reasons why it might be doing it and what you can do about it.

So, why does my Labrador lay on me? Possible reasons are that it wants attention from you, separation anxiety, you have inadvertently reinforced the behavior, you’re in its spot or that it is just being affectionate.

There are actually many reasons why your Labrador might lay on you and it might be due to a combination of reasons. However, there are a number of things you can consider when figuring out the main causes and there are also a number of things you can do about it.

Why your Labrador lays on you

Below are common reasons why Labradors lay on their owners and what would make them more likely to be the main reason why yours has been doing it to you.

Attention

The reason why it lays on you could be that it is looking for attention. This would be more likely if you tend to give it extra attention or things such as belly rubs when it does it.

If you want to get it to stop it would help to give it attention throughout the day but to avoid rewarding it with attention when it tries to lay on you. It would also help to try to recognize when it is likely to try to do it and to redirect its focus onto something else.

You’re in its spot

Another possible cause might be that it thinks that you are in its spot. This would be more likely if it only does it when you are sitting in a certain spot.

In this case, it would also be important to train it to sit or to lay down somewhere else so that it does not display dominance issues.

Spreading its scent

The reason why it does it might be that it is trying to spread its scent onto you so that other dogs are less likely to approach you. This would be more likely if it gets protective when you are around other animals.

Separation anxiety

The cause could also be that it has some separation anxiety. This is where it does not like being left alone and the prospect of being left alone causes it to become anxious. This would be more likely if it tends to lay on you at around the same time that you tend to leave home and if it becomes anxious when you are leaving.

Reinforcing the behavior

It might be the case that you have encouraged it to do it by giving it things it wants when it does it. If you tend to give it things such as extra attention, toys or treats when it lays on you then it might be doing it more in order to get more of those rewards.

Instead, it would help to reward it when it does not lay on you and to try to recognize when it is likely to do it and to redirect its focus onto something else such as laying down in a different area.

Guarding you

The cause might be that it is being protective. This would be more likely if it also becomes protective when you are around other people or animals.

It’s being affectionate

The reason that it lays on you could be that it is just being affectionate. This would be more likely if it also tries to get you to do things such as give it belly rubs when it does it.

Things to consider

Below are some things you can consider when figuring out the main reason why your Labrador has been doing it.

When your Labrador first started to lay on you

If your Labrador did not always lay on you, it would help to consider what else happened when it first started doing it.

Some things to consider would be:

• If you moved home
• If someone else moved away
• If its schedule changed
• If you started working different hours

When and where it lays on you

It would also help to consider if there is a certain time that your Labrador tends to do it since it might be the case that the timing has something to do with it.

For example, if it tends to do it more when you would normally leave home it would be more likely to be due to separation anxiety.

How to get your Labrador to stop laying on you

Below are some options you have when getting your Labrador to stop laying on you.

Ignore it

Since your Labrador could be doing it for attention, one option would be to get it off you, to wait for it to calm down and then to sit back down. If it tries to lay on you again you would get it off you and wait again. Doing this should help to teach it that laying on you won’t result in it getting attention.

It would also help to recognize when it is likely to lay on you and to redirect its focus onto laying somewhere else with the use of positive reinforcement training.

Train it not to

You can also train your Labrador not to lay on you by teaching it to stay on the floor while you’re sat down. You can do this by getting it to sit or to lay down and then gradually teaching it to stay there over longer and longer time periods.

You can do this by applying the same techniques as in the video below:

Avoid encouraging the behavior

Instead of giving it things it wants when it lays on you, it would help to reward it when it does not do it and to follow the tips above to train it not to do it.

Give it attention

In addition to the above, it would also help to give it attention throughout the day in the form of exercise, play and by training it so that it is less likely to feel the need to get attention from you.