Why Does My Dog... Walk in Circles Before Lying Down?

You’ve seen it before: Your dog looks for a place to curl up then starts turning in circles - and even scratching or digging at bedding or carpeting - before finally lying down. So what’s up with this odd sleeping habit? In this video, Dr. Sarah Wooten explains why this curious behavior probably has to do with your canine’s ancestry and when this behavior should be cause for concern.

[@harryputang5352]

I love the way that cute white dog just scratched on the rug and...dropped sleeping 🤣😊

[@nicktoscano1277]

An even more impossible question to answer: Why is it always clockwise, every time, every dog?

[@manakzar7148]

Not usually clockwise

[@revabbyjoovitsky5152]

My Canaan dog does this even in my bed, until she settles down. Googling "Canaan dog" reveals they have only recently been domesticated, they are in fact wild desert dogs from the Negev. Mine came from Central Israel.
The first night or two she slept apart from me near the door. She sat there and near the fence, cried a little, missing her former Master I reckon. Then she moved to my bed which she shares with me. She stopped crying. We don't think about adopted dogs' PTSD from separation, when they had something they valued before meeting us new "owners." We do have to prove our worthiness. There is something noble in this, perhaps. The noble almost-wolf.
Aviva in Akko

[@cyclone7677]

This is actually very help and thank you for the information.

[@quantumchaos1303]

While excessive circling may indeed be an indication of a medical condition, I don't think I buy the "evolutionary" explanation that is so commonly cited for the regular circling before sleep. One of the reasons is that cats do it, too, not just dogs - and cat and dog behaviors are normally quite different, especially in evolutionary terms. Here's what I think: that dogs and cats turning in circles before they lie down - or, more correctly (and importantly), curl up - to sleep is the exact opposite of stretching when they get up. In other words, I believe that they are doing it to CONTRACT their muscles. When dogs and cats exhibit this behavior, they always lie down in the direction they were turning (in other words, they don't turn in a clockwise direction and then curl up in a counter-clockwise direction). Also, neither dogs nor cats turn in circles before lying in any other position - i.e., just lying flat on their stomach or on their sides. If the evolutionary explanation were true, then dogs would do the same thing regardless of the position they are about to lie down in - but they don't. They only do it when they're curling up.
When humans curl up to sleep, anyone can attest to the fact that it takes a while for the spine/muscles to adjust to the new position - perhaps cats and dogs are more efficient at it, physically, out of necessity (needing to curl up when sleeping in a cold environment). So while it may still be an evolutionary thing, I think it's also a physiological thing, rather than a psychological thing.

[@TheBanjoShowOfficial]

Quantum Chaos they could easily have done that to retain warmth, hence the curling up. The first explanation is entirely more likely in my opinion than anything dealing directly with muscle contractions and whatnot. We do the same in cold climate.

[@mayssm]

Our dog makes a little nest out of the blanket on the bed.

[@sashakhan4873]

I have a kitten
She is pre mature and a big head most of the times i see her walking in circle n s

[@Torey777]

My cat always spins in a circle and lays down on my chest

[@releventgaming5700]

thank you

[@varnityuponvarnity7513]

Laying his bed

[@MrThermostatic]

The point was to show a dog spinning around not to discuss why

[@mutantzofficial845]

True v

[@grundlebutter5624]

I do the same thing before I drop my morning stank pickle... Good to know, Thank you...

[@zmajodnocaja5088]

in other words, you have no clue

[@bernarddevera2271]

Because they need to pee