Why is my dog obsessed with my feet?

If your dog has been being obsessed with your feet, 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 is my dog obsessed with my feet? Possible reasons why your dog is obsessed with your feet are that it wants extra attention, it sees your feet as prey, it likes the scent on your feet, it likes their taste, or that it wants belly rubs.

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 some things to consider when figuring out the main cause and there are a number of things you can do about it.

Why is my dog obsessed with my feet?

Below are a number of possible causes and what would make each of them more likely to be the main cause.

Your dog wants attention

The reason why your dog does it might be that it is trying to get extra attention from you. This would be more likely if your dog does it more when you have not been giving it much attention and if you tend to give it extra attention when it does it. Instead, it would help to give your dog more attention when it behaves the way you want it to and to avoid doing so when it does not.

Your dog sees them as prey

Your feet will be moving about like prey does in the wild. The reason why your dog is obsessed with your feet could be that it sees them as prey. This would be more likely if your dog has been doing it more when you move your feet when sitting or when walking.

Your dog wants belly rubs

Another possible cause is that your dog wants you to give it belly rubs. This would be more likely if your dog rolls onto its back when it does it and if it does it when you are sat down with it.

Your dog likes the taste of your feet

It is likely that your feet has a strong taste on them. The reason why your dog has been obsessed with your feet could be that it likes their taste. This would be more likely if your dog tends to lick your feet.

Encouraging the behavior

Another possible cause is that your dog has learned that the behavior results in it getting rewards. If you tend to give your dog things such as extra attention, toys, or treats, when it is obsessed with your feet, it will likely do it more in order to get more rewards.

Your dog likes the scent on your feet

It is likely that your feet have a strong smell on them. Another possible cause is that your dog is attracted to the scent on your feet. This would be more likely if your dog tends to sniff your feet a lot.

Things to consider

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

If your dog has always been obsessed with your feet

If your dog was not always obsessed with your feet, it would help to consider what else happened when your dog first started doing it. If it started doing it suddenly, it might be because it learned that the behavior is rewarded, you started giving it more belly rubs with your feet or you stopped giving it as much attention.

What is different when your dog is not obsessed with your feet

If there is a certain time that your dog tends to do it, it would also help to consider what is different about the timing. For example, if your dog tends to do it when you are walking past it or moving your feet, the cause would be more likely that it sees your feet as prey.

How to get my dog to stop being obsessed with my feet?

Below are some options you have when dealing with the behavior.

Avoid encouraging it

As mentioned earlier, it could be the case that your dog has learned that the behavior gets rewarded. Instead, it would help to reward your dog when it leaves your feet alone and to avoid giving it extra attention or treats when it does not leave your feet alone. Doing this should teach it that bothering you will not get it rewards.

Give it distractions

Another option would be to give your dog things to be distracted with, such as toys or bones, so that it does not want to interact with your feet.

Wear shoes

If your dog has been hurting your feet, another option would be to wear shoes, for now, at around the same time that your dog becomes most obsessed with your feet. Over time, your dog should lose interest in your feet and it should become less necessary for you to wear shoes.

Why does my dog like my feet so much?

Your dog might like your feet because of the smell on your feet, their taste or because it wants things such as belly rubs. It would help to consider the way that your dog interacts with your feet. If it sniffs your feet a lot, the cause would be more likely to be the smell. If it licks them it would be more likely to be the taste. If you give your dog belly rubs a lot, it would be more likely to be that it wants belly rubs.

Why won’t my dog leave my feet alone?

Your dog might not leave your feet alone for any of the reasons mentioned above. It would help to consider the way that your dog interacts with your feet and the timing of it.