Why doesn’t my dog sit on my lap?

If your dog will not sit on your lap, you might be wondering why and what you can do about it. This post will show you a number of possible causes and what you can do about them.

So, why doesn’t my dog sit on my lap? Common reasons why your dog won’t sit on your lap are that it prefers a different spot, it thinks you do not want it to sit with you, it feels threatened, or that it does not want to be bothered.

There are actually a number of possible reasons why your dog has been doing it and it might be due to a combination of them. However, there are a number of things you can consider when figuring out the main reason and there are a number of things you can do about it.

Reasons why your dog won’t sit on your lap

Below are a number of possible reasons why your dog has been doing it and what would make each of them more likely.

It prefers a different spot

The cause could be that it finds sitting on your lap uncomfortable and that there is another spot that it prefers to sit in. This would be more likely if your dog does sit with you when you sit in a certain spot but less likely if it sits far away from you even when you are in a different spot.

It thinks you don’t want it to sit with you

It could be the case that it thinks that you do not want it to sit on your lap. This would be more likely if you previously got mad at it when it did sit near you or if you have been giving it rewards when it sits far away from you. Instead, it would help to be calm with it and to reward it when it shows signs of sitting with you.

It feels threatened

The reason why it has been doing it could be that it feels threatened. This would be more likely if it tends to do it more when you are angry, if it shows signs of being fearful such as making itself appear smaller and if it doesn’t sit with you regardless of what room you’re in. It would help to be calm with your dog and to train it to behave a certain way with the use of positive reinforcement training.

It’s being protective

It could be the case that it does it because it is actually being protective. This would be more likely if it tends to sit in a spot that allows it to see the front door and if it tends to be overly protective at home.

It does not want to be bothered

The reason why it does it might be that it wants to avoid being bothered. This would be more likely if it does not always sit far away and if it does it more when it wants to sleep. In this case, it would help to make sure that it is able to sleep easily at night since it could be the case that it is trying to get extra sleep during the day due to issues sleeping at night.

Things to consider

Below are some things to consider when figuring out the main cause.

If your dog has always not sat with you

If your dog did used to sit on your lap, it would help to consider what else happened when it stopped doing it. If it stopped doing it suddenly, it might be due to things such as you getting mad at it or finding another spot that it likes.

What is different when your dog does sit with you

If it does sit on your lap sometimes, it would also help to consider what is different when it does sit on your lap. For example, if it does do it when it has gotten exercise, it might be the case that it does not do it when it has not gotten exercise because it is full of energy still.

What to do about your dog not sitting on your lap

Below are some things you can do about your dog not sitting on your lap.

Avoid encouraging the behavior

As mentioned above, it might be the case that your dog has learned that not sitting on your lap results in it getting rewards. Instead, it would help to reward your dog when it does do it and avoid rewarding it when it refuses to do it.

Be calm with it

As mentioned above, it could be the case that it has been avoiding you due to feeling threatened. It would help to be calm with your dog and to avoid punishing it since it might not know why it is being punished. It would help to use positive reinforcement training to change its behavior, where possible, instead.

Train it to sit with you

One option would be to train your dog to sit on command with the use of positive reinforcement training. By repeating the process, it should learn that sitting where you want it to results in it getting rewards.