Golden retrievers are famous for their people loving personalities and their ability to learn and communicate with their humans.
Why does my golden retriever stare at me? Golden Retrievers stare for a couple of reasons. One reason is your golden retriever loves you, they want attention or desire something from you, or they are confused, trying to figure out their human. Staring is another way your golden retriever is trying to communicate with you.
Let’s break it down and go over these individual reasons and answer the question: Why does my golden retriever stare at me?
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Golden Retrievers Love their Humans
Your golden retriever may be staring at you simply because they love you. As humans, we bond by staring into each other eyes. This bond happens as the hormone oxytocin is released.
A study showed that dogs have hijacked this bonding method, and a mutual bonding between your golden and you can occur by staring into your dog’s eyes. So next time your golden is staring, maybe try staring back and turn it into a bonding session. Unless you are eating, it’s likely; they want your food! (Source)
My golden does this at night when it’s snuggle time. He will be lying by us and stare. I know he doesn’t want anything, but he’s just happy to be in bed and loves us. Sometimes this is very close interacting.
You may experience this, too, with your golden. He will sometimes put his head on our shoulder or arm and stare at very close proximity. It’s the sweetest thing; I know any golden owner can attest to this.
They Desire Something From You
That leads us to our next topic: your golden is staring at you because they desire something you have. You will often get this stare when you’re in your kitchen. This stare may be done with different body language or noise.
It’s the communication stare of wanting something, maybe food, or needing to go out, or maybe you are just taking too long with getting their food ready. I often get this stare along with a slight grunt and plop down.
It’s a sense of urgency; my golden desires something from me, and he desires it now! The food smells so good he just can’t help himself, or he really really has to go out. It’s always the same for these urgent matters, a stare, moan, and a firm butt plop!
If you happen to be in the kitchen eating or cooking up something that smells delish and you golden retriever starts staring are you. Well you can bet your pup is hoping to when you over with those puppy dog eyes and hoping to score a treat.
Remember, you will be rewarding the behavior if you fall for those puppy dog eyes and give in and toss your dog some food. As cute as it is when they start this as a puppy, you must remember they will grow older and bigger.
It can be hard to cook with a 65 pounder under your feet and not to mention the hair in the kitchen while your cooking. We trained our golden to go lay down in a certain spot; he can still see and smell all the good smells, but he’s not directly under our feet.
We trained him to lay down until we were done, and he learned he would get a treat if he lays down in his spot until we are done cooking and eating. This has worked great for us, and we can still spoil him with a treat just on our terms and keeps him from begging at everyone that comes over for dinner.
They want Attention
Your dog wants to be noticed. This stare may not mean they want a particular item or action but need attention from you. You may not be doing anything particular ( not cooking); maybe you are just watching tv or working on the computer, and you golden will start at your from across the room. They may come closer and give you the same stare and put their paw on you. This is a classic golden retriever move for wanting to play.
My golden will do this in the evening, around the time he is used to getting attention. He is telling me “hey, it’s my playtime” or “I’m ready to play” this is often accompanied by a toy in his mouth that may drop on my lap or at my feet. The whole scene starts with a laser stare until I acknowledge him, and then he will continue to show me what he wanted by bringing the toy.
You will start to learn what each of the stares means by paying attention to the time of day or by what you are doing at the moment. If it is the regular time that a play session usually happens well you can count on your pup remembering its playtime.
They are trying to figure you out
When you are doing something different from what your golden is used to seeing, you may get a weird stare and head tilt. Your golden is simply trying to figure you out. You will see this often with a puppy when everything you do is new to them. My golden does do this when I’m working out. He’s so confused about what I’m doing and why I’m on the floor with him. He thinks I must be down there to play with him!
If you are doing something that makes an unusual noise to your dog, this can prompt them to give you a stare. They are trying to figure out what the noise is and where did it come from. This can sometimes be fun to do with a puppy as they grow and get used to their environment.
Take Away
Golden’s can lock eyes on you for several reasons. Please take into account their body language and your current behavior when they are staring at you. This will help you determine exactly what they are trying to communicate with you. It is also important to recognize if the stare means they need to go out to help with potty training and avoid accidents.
They can also stare at you for no apparent reason besides wanting your attention. If you are busy and your golden feels ignored, you can count on having eyes locked on you like laser beams. Sometimes you can acknowledge them, and this will do the trick, but sometimes they want more from you like a full-blown play session!
Just be careful not to reward a behavior you don’t want them doing. If the staring isn’t a big deal for you and your pup just wants a little loving, and that is it, well, by all means, show them a little attention, but if this is something don’t want your golden to do, then do not pet them when they are staring. Ignore them until they go lay down or stop staring, then show them attention. I guess whatever approach you take will depend if your dog is behaving obsessively.