Why Do Dogs Love to Lay In The Sun?
How often do you find your dog laying in front of the window sunbathing? It’s something all of my dogs have done, and for years I never gave it much thought; I just assumed lying in the sun felt good.
Turns out there’s a bit more to a dogs sunbathing than just a nice warm feeling. Today we’ll take a quick look at why dogs love to lie in the sun.
Why Do Dogs Love to Lay In The Sun?
Does your dog love laying in the sun? Does she have a favorite spot to sunbathe in front of the window? Dogs love laying in the sun because it feels good, and because it’s a good source of Vitamin D.
We love sunbathing, whether it’s at the local beach or in our own backyard. Sunglasses on, sun tan lotion applied, and a nice warm towel on the ground. It’s one of the simple pleasures of summer. The warmth of the sun feels nice on our skin, and it’s a nice healthy dose of vitamin D – in moderation, of course.
Dogs seem to love laying out in the sun just as much as we do. On sunny days you will find my dog Laika lounging and napping in the sunlight for hours. I can hear her now — stretching out on the cozy warm carpet in front of the sliding glass door. If there’s a ray of sun to be found she’ll find it.
Laying in the sun feels good to our dogs, and that extra warmth does help regulate their temperature. (cuddling is another common way our dogs stay warm and comfy)
But lounging around in the sun does more than just feel nice, it’s beneficial to our dogs. Our dogs are getting vitamin D from sunbathing just like us, but it’s obtained in a much different way.
The Importance of Vitamin D For Dogs
Vitamin D is considered a pro-hormone which means it’s more of a hormone than a vitamin. It’s still considered a vitamin because our dogs can’t absorb calcium without it, but it’s also considered a hormone because our dogs body manufactures it in response to direct sunlight.
Vitamin D is kept in the fatty tissues of the body and liver. It helps regulate the calcium and phosphorus balance in our dogs bodies. Vitamin D for dogs is important for bone formation, and muscle and nerve control.
Vitamin D stimulates the kidney conservation of calcium and therefore helps the body to retain it. Because of its interplay with calcium, Vitamin D is extremely important in bone formation and nerve and muscle control.- Pet Education
Most of the vitamin D our dogs receive is obtained through their diet, although they create it with direct sunlight, just like us.
Have you ever wondered why your dog loves to sunbathe?
The Science Behind Your Dogs Sunbathing
When humans lay out in the sun the ray’s help break down the oils in our skin that creates vitamin D. When we stand in direct sunlight the oil in our skin reacts to the UV rays by breaking down the chemical bonds and creating vitamin D3. After it’s broken down it’s absorbed back into the body and into our blood stream through dermal absorption. The process takes about 15-20 minutes.
Dogs have that same chemical on their skin that converts to vitamin D under direct sunlight. But due to their fur vitamin D3 can’t be efficiently absorbed back into their body. Vitamin D3 remains on their fur and gets ingested orally when they lick and groom themselves.
Even though dogs can create their own vitamin D in direct sunlight their absorption is quite inefficient. Our dogs get the majority of their vitamin D through their diet. Next time your dog is grooming himself remember that he’s not just doing it to look pretty, he’s also getting some vitamin D.
Dogs get some vitamin D from laying in the sun, but the majority comes from their diet.
Can Too Much Sun be Harmful to Dogs?
Prolonged exposure to the sun can lead to sunburn and skin cancer in dogs. When it comes to sunburn some dogs are more susceptible than others. The dogs most at risk from sunburn are hairless breeds, those with short, thin coats, and dogs with white or light colored fur.
To prevent sunburn make sure your dog has access to shade at all times. They’ll instinctively seek shade when the sun becomes too intense. If you spend a lot of time outdoors with your dog pick up some dog safe sunscreen. Human sunscreen contains ingredients, such as zinc oxide, that are toxic to pets.
Like us, prolonged exposure to the sun puts our dogs at a higher risk of developing skin cancer. You can help cut down on that risk by making sure your dog has access to shade, and by using dog safe sunscreen when they’re outdoors.
Does Your Dog Love Laying in The Sun?
I assume most dogs love to lay in the sun. Every dog I’ve owned and all of the dogs I’ve known have their own little special sun spot picked out. Does your dog lay in front of windows and doors to soak up some of that warmth? Most dogs seem to have that favorite sunny spot, dedicated to the simplicity of a nice warm nap.
Check out out the Rest of Our “Why Do Dogs” Series:
- Why Do Dogs Like Belly Rubs?
- Why Do Dogs Go Crazy After a Bath?
- Why Do Dogs Have Spotted Tongues?
Resources & Recommended Reading
- Dietary Vitamin D Dependency of Dogs and Cats – NCBI
- Vitamin D May be Risk Factor in Dog’s Heart Failure – Cornell
- Vitamin D Poisoning in Dogs – PetMD
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Yes! They both do! Everyone is always near the sliding glass door when the sun is out and they generally compete with the cats for the best sun spots. LOL
I can them competing for those nice cozy spots lol.
my dog is of white colour and he is a dalmition so how much time he can be in sun i am from india and now here is little cold
If you’re concerned about your dog getting burnt you could try to keep your dog out of the direct sunlight for extended periods of time during the hottest hours of the day (typically 11am – 4 pm). I don’t know if there’s a correct answer to how long is too long because some dog are more susceptible to it than others while others never develop any problems, even if they have light colored fur and pigmentation.
I thought my dog was just dumb, because there are shady areas in the yard. He hates it inside with the A.C. running. We’re in Maui so…
Yes, my dog and cats all love to nap in the sun. In the afternoon, when the sun shines through our living room window, that is about the only time the three of them will be caught napping where it’s OK to touch. They all just want to be in that little spot of sunlight, and I guess it’s worth sharing!
So cute that they share their love of the sun so well that they have to actually get close and touch one another lol.
Us Pacific Northwest Doggies gotta seek out the sunny spots – this is a great, informative post!
Reya LOVES sunbathing! She actually moves throughout the day in different area in the house to get the best ‘sunspots’. While I know vitamin D is important for humans I never considered it for dogs! I think I’m going to move one of her beds by one of her favorites spots now. Thank you so much for the info. 🙂
I love that Reya moves to be inline with the sun, they’re just so darn attracted to it.
Sometimes, I lay on the floor with Oscar, so we can bask in the beam together 🙂
I’ve done it as well – it sure it nice and warm down there.
Davinia and Indiana loves napping on the stairs in the winter when the sun comes in in the afternoon. In the summer they enjoy sleeping on the balcony.
Wonderful fascinating post, especially the part about grooming to get the Vitamin D into their bodies! My little dog Phoebe is a total sun worshipper, she will move around the yard following the sun. Late in the day she finds the tiniest patch of sun left in the yard & goes over to lay there!! Even my Husky will occasionally lay out in full sunlight – now I understand why!
It’s definitely made me realize how deeply rooted the behavior is – I figured it was just for warmth.
None of our dogs actually choose to lay in the sun; they don’t like the heat so much.
My dog not so much–but the cats follow puddles of sunshine all across the floor!
All of my pets love sun puddles! Even my huskies!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
On sunny days, I watch Nike move from spot to spot in the house, trying to catch the rays. It’s really sweet! Aren’t dogs funny!
Yes, my dog loves the great outdoors when it’s all sunny out! It’s cool to find out just why dogs love laying in the sun. Thanks for sharing!
One of our Siberian Huskies is actually a sunbather! We always joke she didn’t get the “snowdog” memo! Great article. Will be sharing over on my FiveSibes Facebook page!
My husky loves sunbathing she lays in the front of the porch where the gravel is always makes me nervous because the rocks get hot in the sun I let her enjoy it for awhile then push her to get up lol i was wondering if it was ok to let her do this because of the gravel
Holy woof. Koly will lay in the sun and lick himself FOR HOURS and I’ve always found it a little annoying. (He is a very loud, smacking licker). I will aim to be more tolerant of this going forward…I guess. LOL.
Lol I guess it sort of explains it. I’ve always though it was just seeking warmth, but yeah he’s getting some of his daily vitamins in with all that grooming.
Sparkle enjoys the sun too! It makes her tired when she gets back inside…so when I need to get rest at night, I let her lay out and run around until her heart is content.
We don’t really have any good sun spots in my apartment, so I actually don’t know if Luna likes to lay in the sun!
Cats are always seeking out sun puddles too!
I think cats are even bigger sun seekers than dogs from what I’ve seen. I know they both love it, but a lot of cats reeeeallly love it.
Mr. N loves sunning himself. Too bad we rarely get sun!
My Chihuahuas are professional sunbathers. My Border Collies only sunbathe seasonally. Since I’m in Arizona, they can get a little too warm in the summer.
We are a split family on this. My big sister Katie, the Kuvasz, doesn’t like being in the sun, neither does my cat sis, Sophie. Cat bro Bert, my little GBGV sis Bailie, and I love to lie in the sunshine and we often argue over the sun puddle spots in the house.
I wonder if Katie doesn’t prefer it as much because of her breed – it’s definitely interesting. When there’s a nice sunny spot to be had I guess it’s worth arguing over lol.
Very interesting! I hadn’t really thought about the connection between a dog laying in the sun and absorption of vitamin D. I wonder if cats also get vitamin D from sunlight. Thanks for the great post 🙂
Spencer loves the sun! Thank you for such a great article!
Well that makes sense! Now I finally get why I do this! Mom always tells me its just to stay cozy and warm!
My 3 dogs always compete for the sunny spot!! Great blog post.
Fascinating! I had no idea that a dog could absorb Vitamin D from their licking their fur after laying in the sun. Haley loves soaking up the rays, but she gets pretty warm in the summertime, being a black dog. Very interesting!
Great article! Rooney likes to lay in the sun sometimes. He really loves being outside though.
I should take pictures of the 4 of them belly up on bright warm days — they absolutely LOVE sunbathing. Great article to shed a medical light on the subject.
I brought my son’s dog home my dog was fine with him for a couple of days and then bam my dog attacked. My son dog any body else have a similar problem.
It’s hard to say without know the specifics, but sometimes dogs can exhibit either jealousy or resource guarding over their owners. Does it seem like your dogs dog attacked while he was getting attention form you? Or did it happen when your sons dog was hanging around your dogs toys, food, etc?
I am looking for Amy Gabbard I bought a Pug puppy from her about 13 years ago and wonder if she is still breeding them
I have a black Australian Shepherd/Poodle mid. His hair is thick poodle texture. This summer with temps in the upper 90’s he’ll lay in the sun on our hot deck. Didn’t know why till I read this article….Very informative…thank you.
My chihuahua also loves sunbathing, however the last few days it’s been so hot 115 – 119 and she still wants to go out. She is so thin furred though, and she got sun burned. She cried. I matter where we touched her. This happened in just small 10-15 min out door intervals. She wasn’t left for hours. Just when she scratched to go out and then I would go get her in a few min because I was concerned about the heat. It never occurred she would be sunburned.
If your dog is a sunbather make sure you watch for sunburns.
So sorry that happened, it’s horrible. It’s especially scary considering it can happen in such a short amount of time.
Thank you. I was shocked. She’s never burnt before and she has had 4 summers. It didn’t occur to me that she could burn. It has been unusually hot though. 115-120. I felt so bad. Took her to vet for emergency visit. and they didn’t know. She kept crying when I would touch her but it was always different spots so confused me. That night i noticed her belly had gotten bright red. I cut an aloe plant and carefully scooped the safe part out and covered her belly and ears. By morning she was feeling better. Today she is fully herself and wanting to go lay back in he sun.
I’m so glad she’s feeling better. When our dogs aren’t feeling well it’s so stressful since they can’t tell us exactly what’s going on. Hopefully the weather calms down a bit, it’s hard to find relief anywhere when it’s that hot (well for me at least).
Thanks Jen. She is doing much better. it’s just like when you live where it snows and your stuck inside between Dec thru feb here we stay inside from June thru sept, then between sept and oct the temps generally drop 40 Degrees and it’s winter. We rarely have fall.
I believe that Vitamin D is due to the UV-B rays of sunlight. I do NOT believe that UV-B rays can come through most glass windows.
I have a pitbull and she’s mostly white and she gets hot spots on her belly by her hindquarters and she loves to lay in the sun so I was wondering if that aggravates it I am in the process of getting her sunscreen but I’m wondering if that is still not going to address the hotspots
Do you know why she gets the hot spots? I don’t think the sunbathing itself would cause problems, but her surroundings when she’s outdoors might. Hot spots can develop from environmental allergens or insect bites – in either of those cases spending a lot of time outdoors might aggravate the situation.
This makes sense but my dog doesn’t lick herself, ever. It’s the weirdest thing. But she will lick me and other dogs ????????♀️
My baby dog ???? is all about the sunshine. We live in California and in the few days a year its not sunny. We get looks like humans where is my sun? She works every day and bring me joy 24 hours a day.
Wow, very informative article! Thank you. I did a random google search asking why my Siberian Husky would rather lay out in the 107 degree temp right now instead of being inside with us in AC home of 78 degrees, and your article came up. Now it explains it. I was initially worried, but then realize he doesnt really spend more than 20 min out there and then will run back inside. I just worry that he will fall asleep and not wake up soon enough before burning.