There’s a genetic reason why your Labrador won’t stop begging for food

Labrador retrievers are one of the most popular dog breeds on the planet, and it's obvious why.

They are adorable, and their sweet and gentle nature makes them an ideal family pet. One thing any Lab owners knows only too well is that they are always starving, and are seasoned beggars. Did you know, though, that there's a reason why your pet Lab begs for food all the time? According to Live Science, the answer lies in their DNA. A study of Labrador obesity was done at the University of Cambridge, as the leader author and vet, Eleanor Raffan, was seeing a high instance of overweight Labs in her clinic. She was curious to see whether this had anything to do with the genes of this particular breed. They looked at 33 Labs - 18 that were a healthy weight and 15 obese dogs - and found the heavier dogs carried a variation of a gene called POMC. This gene variation essentially means hunger cues are not processed properly, and the dogs are much more motivated by food. Therefore, they will be more stubborn when it comes to getting their snack on. Scientists involved then studied 700 more dogs to get a wider sample and found the variation in about a quarter of them. So, that's why your Lab makes the sad eyes at you when you're scraping off the dinner plates.