What Your Golden Retriever’s Sleeping Position Means

golden retrievers sleep in some weird positions but what you probably didn't know is that how they're sleeping can tell you a lot about how they're feeling let's start with the cutest position the donut this is when your golden curls themselves up into a tiny little ball for a deep snooze some people call it the fuzzy bagel and goldens usually do it when they're cold or they're trying to get real comfortable and feel protected fun fact on cold nights in the wild wolves sleep in this position with their tail over the noses to trap warm air near their face your golden might also put their bushy tail over their nose in this position although i'm sure it's not quite as cold in your home this next sleeping position is a total opposite of the donut and probably the weirdest one golden retrievers sometimes sleep on their backs they've got their paws up in the air and they're showing off their personal business for all to see when your dog is sleeping in this position it means that they're totally relaxed their bellies are exposed which is a sign of trust so they don't have a care in the world they might also sleep this way when they're hot since the fur on their stomach is thinner and will allow them to get a bit of a breeze down there if you find your pups sleeping like this you can be happy knowing that they're happy next up is another goofy position you may find you're golden in the sploot it's also called the superman position or as i've seen in some facebook groups the doggy froggy position or the frog dog this is similar to when your golden is sleeping on their back they're feeling pretty carefree and maybe a little warm so they're splooting to expose as much of their belly as possible it's more common in smaller breeds but golden retriever puppies and adult goldens with flexible hips will sploot too as your golden gets older they may sploot less but they'll often still do this next funny sleeping position the seal the seal is when your golden retriever has their front paws out to the side like a seal and they're resting their chin on the floor it's similar to the sploot where they're feeling carefree and just plopping down for a snooze but it's similar in function to this next sleeping position which is like phase one of sleeping the lion pose the lion pose or sphinx pose is when your dog is resting their head on their front paws when they're stretched out in front of them and their back paws are off to the side or tucked underneath them in a crouched position it's like phase one of sleeping because this isn't their most restful position this is the position they usually lay in when they get bored because there's nothing better to do or when they first lay down they might fall into a little snooze in this position but they're ready to spring up at a moment's notice if they see you getting up to go do something fun but if they start falling into a deeper sleep here they might transition to the next sleeping position the pancake the pancake is when your dog is sleeping sprawled out on their side flat as a pancake if your dog is sleeping on their side they're really tired and looking to get in some quality sleep you'll often see your pup go from the lion's pose to the pancake as they get sleepier and sleepier you might also see your dog dream when sleeping on their side you can tell they're dreaming because they'll twitch or growl or yelp in their sleep it's normal for goldens to dream although the first time you see it it can be a little alarming if your golden is extra snuggly you may find them sleeping in this next position the cuddle monster golden retrievers sometimes sleep cuddling up or back to back with their humans or your other pets when goldens are puppies they snuggle up with their litter mates to stay warm and be comforted some goldens still like to cuddle and they may lay with their backs against you or with their head on your lap and then you've got some goldens who still think they're little lap dogs and don't realize quite how big they are you can also tell a lot about how your golden is feeling by where they sleep here's a fun and maybe controversial fact for you we did a study where we asked golden retriever owners if they allow their dogs on the couch or in the bed with them we found that 82 percent of golden retriever owners do allow their dogs on the couch and 56 percent of golden sleep in the bed with their owners the akc did a similar survey but they found that only 45 of dogs sleep in the bed with their owners the fact that golden retriever owners let their dog sleep in the bed with them more than the average dog owner further proves that we love our dogs the most but let's get back to the main topic here what do you think about letting your golden on the couch or in the bed with you golden retrievers like the way you smell and there's a lot of your scent on the couch and in your bed so it can be comforting for your dog to sleep on your furniture it can also ease your anxiety and help you feel safe knowing that you've got a big protector right there in bed with you but there are some drawbacks to having your dog sleep with you if your dog is a restless sleeper or an intense cuddler they could wake you up or make you hot so you might not get the best night's sleep another weird place you might find your golden retriever sleeping is on your dirty clothes or your dirty shoes there's a lot of your smells there too so they'll sleep peacefully while basking in your scent and here's a funny struggle almost all gold retriever owners have had you get a nice comfortable expensive bed for them but then you find them sleeping next to it on the hard floor it doesn't make sense to us but there's usually a good reason for that and that good reason often has to do with their body temperature the nice comfy bed you got them is probably warmer than the cool tile or wood so if they're hot they'll probably choose a tile or wood over the bed during the day you might also find them sleeping in front of the window for the opposite reason the sun usually heats up the floor in front of the window so it's warmer there for them a lot of where your dog is sleeping has to do with their body temperature and that's partially why you'll find golden sleeping in this next spot but there's another reason too gold retrievers sometimes like to sleep in the bathroom there's usually a cool tile floor there for them but they also like to sleep in cramped spaces where they can just barely fit they feel safe and secure in there this is the reason you'll also find them under tables or sleeping in a corner and if you're in there with them using the restroom there's a lot of you smells which we know that they love golden retrievers don't only sleep in weird positions and places but they also do some weird things in their sleep we talked about dreaming but have you ever seen your dog sleep with their eyes open yep goldens do that and it can be a little creepy if you're not expecting it we don't really know why they do that but scientists have a few theories one is that they think they're not fully asleep and just dozing off a bit and then there's a theory that they're actually sleeping with their eyes open to be alert for predators but what we do know is that when they're sleeping with their eyes open you can often see their third eyelid yep they've got an eyelid on the top and the bottom of their eye like us humans do as well as a little light-colored eyelid underneath them it helps protect their eye produce tears and even helps with their immune system this next weird things goldens do in their sleep is a little less weird but a lot funnier it's called the golden grumble golden retrievers sometimes let out a big moan or sigh when they lay down as if they've just put in a hard day's work here's my golden oliver letting us know how tough his day was and that he's looking forward to resting his tired old bones this is usually a sign of contentment so you can know that your pup is comfortable if they're letting out a big sigh the next weird things goldens do before they sleep is something that you definitely want to be paying attention to if you don't want to have to clean up any accidents golden retrievers sometimes circle the area before they lay down scientists think they do this for a few reasons that were inherited from their wild ancestors they might be trying to point their nose into the wind so that they can more easily smell a predator coming it lets them take one last look at their surroundings before they lay down or they're trying to get their bed nice and comfortable in the wild this might have helped them flatten out grass or remove sticks to be more comfortable but what you want to make sure of especially if you have a puppy is that your dog is circling to look for a nice place to lay and not for a nice place to use the restroom these are just some of the weird behaviors that golden retrievers do watch this video next about the 20 weirdest golden retriever behaviors to see more of them thanks for watching and i'll see you in the next video

Channel: Golden Hearts

Views: 124,164

Keywords: Golden retriever, golden retriever puppy, golden retriever dog, golden retriever puppies, golden retriever tip, golden retriever tips, golden retriever training, golden retriever puppy training, dog, puppy, golden hearts, golden retriever care, golden retriever sleeping position, golden retriever sleep, golden retriever sleeping, golden retriever puppy sleeping, golden retriever puppy cuddle, golden retriever puppy cuddling, golden retrievers cuddling, golden retriever cuddles

Id: OnVyYN3Y1Hk

Length: 8min 16sec (496 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 19 2022