My 8 month old lab has always been interested in my socks. We usually catch him with it in his mouth and say drop it and he does and then carries on with his own toys. Recently we have noticed he has taken a liking to our shoes. He will not chew them or anything but will just put them on his bed and then rest his head on them. Very cute but we are wondering if we should be correcting him when this happens. Its no big deal to us except when we have dirt and grass on our shoes and then we find it in the rest of the house. We now put the dirty shoes in the closet so he can't get them. Is he trying to tell us something or is he just acting his age. I am all for correcting bad behaviour but also realize he will act his age from time to time.

The shoes carry your scent and he rests his head on it because it comforts him. It makes him feel like he is near you. Well, that's my guess anyway. Perhaps you could give him a worn pair of shoes you don't use with out the grass on it and let him have that and make a ball out of an old pair of socks for him. The shoe thing makes me wonder if he wants puppies cause my dog I had as a kid did that with one of her toys and she would also clean and try to feed it but then you say "he" so I guess that couldn't be it.

My lab also likes socks and shoes, and also dirty laundry. Crankie is right, I think they are comforted by the smell of their humans. Actually my cat does the same thing too.

Your are lucky, many Labs shred anything they find. Not only does it destroy stuff, it causes medical problems too. Each dog is different. You might do better to teach it to leave your shoes and socks where you left them. When you are watching it, immediately correct it as soon as it goes for anything except its own toys. In a quiet, but firm voice ''Bad dog, its name drop!''. Gently remove what ever and replace it with one of his toys, or if older, hold eye contact until the puppy drops it. Otherwise, enjoy your nice dog.

My lab does the same sort of thing, and she's about the same age as yours. She doesn't move our shoes, but she likes to shove her nose in them and sniff them. Our socks do get moved to mysterious places, though. Many times we'll find them "conveniently" underneath a toy she's chewing. They're never chewed up, but we still take them away. We figure she's probably trying to see how much she can get away with. She's a sneaky creature. I'm sure you can relate.

Hi,
My 12 yrs old housedog did the same thing, when she was a puppy, around 6 months to a year old! She never shredded any shoes or socks, but sometimes would just lay her head on them, maybe moving them a few feet away from where they were. She also likes to lay her head on one of her many toys.
Maybe in time, your's will leave the socks and shoes alone. Mine doesn't bother them anymore, after about a year.
I do wish you the best, and good luck with your dog. They are GREAT!