Why is my Labrador so annoying?

If your Labrador has been annoying 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 is my Labrador so annoying? Possible reasons are that it is getting a lack of exercise, training or attention. It could also be that you have inadvertently been reinforcing the behavior or you get reactive with it.

There are a number of different reasons why your Labrador might be being annoying and it could be due to a combination of reasons. However, there are a number of things you can consider when trying to figure out the cause and there are a number of things you can do about it.

Why your Labrador is annoying

Below, I will show you a number of reasons why your Labrador might be annoying you and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.

A lack of exercise

Labradors are meant to get exercise daily in order to be fully stimulated. When they do not get enough exercise they can behave abnormally and it could be why yours has been annoying you. This would be especially likely if it becomes more annoying on days where it does not get exercise.

Generally, it is recommended for them to get at least an hour of exercise per day as healthy adults.

A lack of training

If you have not given your Labrador much training then it will not know how you want it to behave and it will behave the way that it feels like behaving. This is why it is important to give it lots of training consistently.

It would help to start by training it to do simple things in simple environments and then to build up to training it to do more challenging things in more difficult environments.

If you have already given it training it could be the case that the method you have been using is wrong. I have written more about how you might be training it wrong in this post.

A lack of attention

It could be the case that it becomes annoying because it is trying to get extra attention from you. This would be more likely if it 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 it attention throughout the day by exercising it, playing with it and training it. But, it would help to avoid rewarding it with attention when it becomes annoying and to wait for it to calm down before giving it attention.

You have been reinforcing the behavior

It could also be the case that it has been doing it because you have been inadvertently encouraging the behavior. If you tend to give it things such as extra toys, treats or attention when it is annoying then it will likely do it more in order to get more rewards.

Instead, it would help to reward it when it is being well behaved, to stop rewarding it when it is not and to use positive reinforcement training to change its behavior.

You get reactive around it

Labradors tend to be highly responsive to their owner’s emotions. If you get emotional or reactive around your Labradors it will cause it to act in a similar way. Instead, it would help to be calm around your Labrador and to get it to behave the way that you want with training.

Nature

Labradors were bred to work alongside their owners for hours on a daily basis. With that being the case, they will naturally look to their owners for direction. This is why it is important to train it to behave the way that you want it to.

How you can stop your Labrador from being annoying

Below are some things you can do about your Labrador being annoying.

Positive reinforcement training

Positive reinforcement training is where you encourage behaviors you want to see by rewarding your Labrador when it shows signs of displaying them.

To use positive reinforcement training to get your Labrador to stop bothering you it would be necessary to reward it before it starts annoying you, to stop when it starts acting the way that you do not want it to and then to reward it when it begins acting how you want it to again.

Redirect its attention

Another option would be to learn to recognize when it is likely to start being annoying and to redirect its focus onto something else. One way to do this would be to train it to do something such as to lay down with the use of positive reinforcement training and to get it to do it when it is about to annoy you.

Avoid negative reinforcement

Negative reinforcement training is where you reward your Labrador for behaving the wrong way causing it to do it more.

Instead of rewarding it when it misbehaves, try to redirect its attention and to use positive reinforcement training. When it does annoy you, try to avoid giving it attention until it starts to behave.

Be calm around it

As mentioned above, it could be the case that being highly emotional around it is causing it to be annoying and reactive. Instead, it would help to interact with it in a calm way and to give it lots of training.

Give it lots of exercise

It is also important to make sure that it is able to get daily exercise if it is a healthy adult. Generally, it is recommended for them to get an hour of exercise daily.

Give it things to be distracted with

In addition to the above, you could give it things to be distracted with such as toys, puzzle games or bones.

Things to consider

Below are some things you can consider about your Labrador being annoying.

If it changed its behavior suddenly

If it was not always annoying, it would help to consider what else changed when it started being annoying since it could be the case that there was an event that caused it to start.

If it did become annoying suddenly then it would help to consider what happened at around the same time that it started being annoying. Possible things that might have happened could include:

• You stopped giving it as much attention or exercise
• You rewarded it one time when it was annoying
• Its daily routine changed
• You changed its diet

If it has always been annoying you then it would be more likely to be due to things such as reacting to your emotions and a lack of training.

When it becomes annoying

It would also help to consider if there is a certain time that it tends to be more annoying. If there is then it could be the case that the timing has something to do with it.

For example, if it starts being annoying at around the same time that you would normally leave, it could be because it has separation anxiety.

Consistency is key

When training your Labrador, it is important to be consistent. It is unlikely that you will be able to change its behavior significantly with just one training session. But, if you train it consistently over the course of weeks and months, you can get much better results.