Why is my Labrador so stubborn?

If your Labrador is stubborn you might want to know why and what you can do about it.

This post will show you a number of reasons why your Labrador might be being stubborn and what you can do about it.

So, why is my Labrador so stubborn? Possible reasons are that you have not trained it to follow your command, you trained it the wrong way, you stopped training it, your Labrador learned that listening to you results in it getting things it does not want, illness or a lack of exercise.

Your Labrador could be behaving that way for a number of reasons and it could be due to a combination of them. However, there are a number of things you can do about it, depending on the most likely cause.

Why your Labrador is so stubborn

Below are a number of reasons why your Labrador might be being stubborn and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.

It hasn’t been trained to listen to you

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

You have been training it when it’s distracted

If you have been giving it training, it might be the case that there is an issue with the training method you are using. If you tend to train it in a distracting environment it might be the case that there are too many distractions around and that it isn’t paying much attention to you.

Instead, it would help to start out by training it in a less distracting environment such as the backyard and then to build up to training it in one with distractions.

You stopped training it

If you did give it training in the past, it might be being stubborn now because you stopped training it. This would be more likely if it has gradually become more stubborn over time. It’s important to make sure to continue giving your Labrador training so that it continues to be responsive to your command.

It learned that listening to you gets it things that it doesn’t want

If you tend to punish your Labrador when it does what you tell it to it might have learned to stop doing what you say. For example, if you punish it when it comes to you after misbehaving it will likely learn not to come to you instead of not to misbehave.

Instead, it would help to give it lots of positive reinforcement training by starting with the basics and building up from there.

You didn’t train it in stages

If you did give it training, it could be the case that your training method was at fault. When training your Labrador, it would help to start out by training it to do simple things and then to build up to getting it to do things that are more challenging.

It’s bored

Labradors are meant to get exercise on a daily basis and they can start to behave abnormally when they do not get enough. Generally, it is recommended for healthy adult Labradors to get at least an hour of exercise per day.

It’s ill

If it has started being stubborn suddenly it might be because it is ill or injured. This would be more likely if it has been showing other signs of being ill or injured as well. In this case, the best option would be to take it to a vet.

How to get your Labrador to be less stubborn

Below are some things you can do to get your Labrador to be less stubborn.

Train it to do the things that you want

The first thing to do is to take the time to train your Labrador to behave the way that you want it to. You can do this by using positive reinforcement training by teaching it easy commands in an easy environment and then by building up to more challenging commands in more distracting environments.

Avoid negative reinforcement

It would also help to avoid reinforcing the behavior by rewarding it when it behaves the way you want it to and avoiding rewarding it when it does not.

Give it exercise

It would also help to make sure that it is able to get the right amount of exercise if it is a healthy adult. Generally, it is recommended for them to get at least an hour of exercise per day.

Ensure that its diet is right

It could be the case that your Labrador has been being stubborn due to something that you have been feeding it. This would be more likely if it started being stubborn when you started feeding it something different.

It would help to make sure no one else has been feeding it and you can look here to see what you should or should not be feeding it.

Be patient

When training your Labrador, it is important to be patient. It is not likely that you will be able to get it to change its behavior significantly with just one training session. But, you can get good results by training it consistently over the course of weeks and months.

Things to consider

When it started being stubborn

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

If it started being stubborn suddenly it would be more likely to be due to things such as becoming ill or injured, negatively reinforcing the behavior, a problem with its diet or a lack of exercise. It would help to consider what else changed when it started being stubborn.

When it is stubborn

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

For example, if it only comes when it is getting fed then it would be necessary to train it to come at different times as well.