As a dog owner, you must have noticed your beloved pooch to straddle and stand over your feet. However, if you don’t know the reasons behind your dog’s such behavior, it’s obvious for you to want to know the exact motives of your dog’s straddling and standing over your feet.
Thereafter, let’s proceed to read further to know about the explanations behind such behavior of dogs.
Why Does My Dog Straddle And Stand Over My Feet?
A dog’s standing on its owner’s feet indicates that it wants attention, it’s being defensive, it makes the dog feel safe, or wants to dissipate its scent. And when a dog straddles over its owner’s feet, it’s displaying its playfulness, anxiety issues, it’s sick or in heat, or seeking attention.
Table of Contents
The causes behind standing and straddling are different from each other.
Therefore, to give you a better perception here the causes behind standing and straddling of your dog over your feet have been explained and listed separately.
Why Does My Dog Straddle Over My Feet?
5 primary reasons behind your dog’s straddling over your feet have been described below
Being Playful:
More or less every dog prefers to play with its owner. So when your dog is in a playful mood and wants to spend some time playing with you, he is most likely to straddle over your feet.
Anxiety Issues:
If your dog is dealing with some anxiety issues such as separation anxiety or he is uncertain about his condition, he will straddle over your feet. Because straddling allows him to stay near you which assures him and eases his anxiety or uncertainty.
Sickness:
Your dog will straddle over your feet when he is sick, is in pain, or hurt. Straddling over feet is a manner that all dogs including your pooch will adopt to make you understand that he is sick, is in pain, or is injured.
Asking For Attention:
When your dog wants attention from you or wants to stay closer to you, he will straddle over your feet so that you pay attention to him.
When It’s In Heat:
Sometimes your dog will be seen to straddle over your feet during its heat season, especially if it’s an unneutered dog. Both male and female dogs can do it because that time he/she is driven by its hormone.
Why Does My Dog Stand Over My Feet?
5 causes are explained below to answer this topic for you.
Seeking Attention:
When your dog is not getting enough attention, he wants from you that he actually wants, he is most likely to stand on your feet wherever you are around him or sitting on the couch.
He Feels Safe:
Dogs love to stay in a pack and feel safe when they are in human touch or spending time around their owners. So naturally, it makes sense that your dog will stand over your feet because he feels secure when he is near you or in touch with you.
Being Protective:
When there are lots of unknown people around you and your dog, he can take them as a threat and can become overprotective. So, by standing over your feet, he is simply being protective and wants to guard you against the surrounding.
To Dissipate Its Scent:
Spreading its scent onto you can be a reason why your dog stands on you. He will do such an act so that other animals don’t approach you.
Encouraging Behavior:
Standing over your feet can be a case of encouraging the behavior. If in past, you have treated, patted, or gave extra attention when your dog stands on your feet, he is most likely to stand again on your feet to get rewarded by you.
What To Do About Your Dog Standing On Your Feet?
When your dog is frequently standing on your feet, the first thing you can do is stop encouraging this behavior.
As soon as your pouch will realize that he is not being appreciated anymore or getting rewards for standing on your feet, he will gradually stop standing on your feet.
However, if you realize that your canine is standing on your feet to grab your attention to him to get patted and petted by you then just ignore him every time he comes near you to stand on your feet.
And, lastly, keep your dog under consistent behavior training for not standing on your feet. And treat him well as a positive reinforcement every time he abides by the training he is getting from you.
How To Stop The Dog Straddle My Feet?
Here 5 effective ways have been illustrated briefly and listed below to stop a dog from straddling over your feet.
Don’t Encourage The Behavior:
After getting a puppy, discourage him every time by ignoring him whenever he is trying to straddle on your feet. When since puppyhood, your dog will learn that you don’t appreciate his straddling, he will not continue doing so in his adulthood.
Divert His Mind:
Diverting your dog’s mind whenever he is trying to straddle over your feet to seek attention or inviting you to play with him is another way of stopping this behavior.
You can command him to do something else or give him an exciting toy such as chew toys to play with to divert his mind.
Obedience Training:
Another most effective way is training your dog with basic obedience training. Train him personally or by taking the help of a professional to listen to your commands. So that your pooch stops straddling over your feet on your own whenever he listens to your command.
Neuter Him/Her:
Neuter your dog to decrease its hormone level so that he/she doesn’t straddle over your feet when it’s in heat.
Take Him To A Vet:
If the straddling is a cause of physical pain, injury, or sickness, immediately take your dog to visit a vet so that his discomfort alleviates and he stops straddling over your feet.
How Do You Assert Dominance Over A Dog?
The ways/manner of asserting dominance over a dog and being an alpha leader have been depicted below.
Be Clam Assertive:
Dogs are less likely to listen to the commands of an owner with an uncertain attitude. So while handling a dominant dog or asserting dominance while performing a task, you must be calm assertive more than usual.
So that your dog can sense your balanced behavior and let you take charge.
Eye Contact:
Making direct eye contact is essential because it will connect you and a dog strongly and the dog will feel that you are serious regarding command, and he must act accordingly. And while commanding you should hold direct eye contact as long as your dog looks another way.
Set Rules, Limitations, And Boundaries:
Train your dog within your set rules and limitations so that he knows how he should behave, what are his limitations. Also, make him realize the set boundaries so that he doesn’t invade your personal space and stays in his area.
Never Stop Training:
Even if your dog is not a pup anymore, continue training him with new behavior training and tricks to behave properly and listens to your commands. Because dogs can adopt bad behavior at any time.
Positive Reinforce:
Treat your dog with delicious treats whenever he acts according to your command, let you take lead, don’t act dominantly, and don’t cross set boundaries, rules for him. Treats will work as a great positive reinforcement to encourage him to continue his good behavior.
Is It Normal For My Dog To Stand Over My Feet?
It’s is considered as normal behavior for your dog to stand over your feet as long as he is repeating this standing on feet behavior only a couple of times a week.
However, if your dog is going through separation anxiety or he is acting up all clingy all the time, it might not be normal for your dog to stand over your feet too frequently.
Why Does My Dog Put His Foot On My Foot?
Your dog’s putting his Foot on your foot is a simple indication that he is conveying his love to you. It’s just a manner of dogs showing vice versa affection and love towards their owners when they are being petted and loved.
What Does It Mean When Your Dog Stands In Front Of You?
When your dog stands in front of you, it’s just an indication of trust. Your beloved pooch is trying to convey that he trusts you and not going to attack you.
Also sometimes it means that your dog is wanting your attention, treat, food, being nervous or protective.
Final Thoughts:
When a dog yearns for attention, wants to feel safe, being protective, feeling anxious, or wants to dominate its owner, it stands on its owner’s feet. Also, a dog straddles over its master’s feet when it’s going through separation anxiety, needs compassion, is sick, or has developed this behavior.