# Touching



## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

Why do dogs find it necessary to constantly touch you, whether it's laying right up against you or sitting on your feet? Is it a pack thing, a way to show affection? What is it?


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## Marty (Dec 10, 2005)

I don't know but Rufus drives me crazy with his shit some times, always right up against me day and night


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

Ever tripped over them? If they're not sitting on your feet then they're walking under them.


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## money_killer (Apr 14, 2008)

yeh i wonder this too it gets very annoying. my female literally moans and crys when im not with her and even when she is with and she cant get any closer to me.......


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## Marty (Dec 10, 2005)

smokey_joe said:


> Ever tripped over them? If they're not sitting on your feet then they're walking under them.


Yep 24/7 LOL

Got to love them though


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## TashasLegend (Jun 7, 2006)

I've read that its a dominant thing BUT I think its an exception with pitties. They just crave that attention.


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

Marty said:


> Yep 24/7 LOL
> 
> Got to love them though


LOL, ya, that's what I have to remind myself.

It always seems to happen when I'm cooking or carrying food. I think they trip me on purpose hoping I'll drop something.


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

TashasLegend said:


> I've read that its a dominant thing BUT I think its an exception with pitties. They just crave that attention.


Dominance? I guess it could be, but they seem to be comforted by touching. I would say it's more about craving attention, too. It's like they're just not happy unless they are touching you.

They also steal my seat when I get up. I guess maybe cause it's warm? Anyone else's dogs do this?


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## TashasLegend (Jun 7, 2006)

Legend steals my spot in bed. Hahaha. When I come back he gives me the sleepy eye look so then I have to squeeze in between him & my boyfriend.


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

TashasLegend said:


> Legend steals my spot in bed. Hahaha. When I come back he gives me the sleepy eye look so then I have to squeeze in between him & my boyfriend.


LOL, ya, that's fun. And these big dogs are hard to move when they're good and asleep and it's just dead weight. Then, when you move them, they look at you like, "What the heck?"


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## PeanutsMommy (Sep 21, 2008)

i think its a form of affection...i cant go anywhere without peanut being RIGHT there. I have to be honest though..i dont mind


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## Sadie (Jun 18, 2008)

Yeah I think it's form of affection maybe some dominance .. My dogs are up my a** 24/7 lol if I move they move ... I can't roll over without them rolling over with me hahaha. I don't mid all the attention though ..


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## FloorCandy (Feb 19, 2009)

Lady is very submissive, always rolling on her back and asking for tummy rubs, but she is always touching me. Especially since her injury. I have been going crazy because she is ALWAYS on top of me if she isn't in her crate. Before the injury she liked to go out in the nice weather and chew sticks in the yard. She would come in every half hour or so to make sure I was ok, and hadn't moved, and then head out again. Now that she can't play in the yard, I am her ONLY source of entertainment. She is supposed to be on crate rest, but as long as she doesn't leave the couch I dont see the harm, but lately I have had to start crating her so I can have some time to myself. She's just lonely and bored, she never tries to act in a dominant manner, if anything she's more submissive, putting her head under my legs, licking me all the time, if I look at her she makes eye contact and looks away, I think the splint has given her self-esteem a bit of a whollup.


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## Hirihat (May 5, 2009)

I've always viewed it as affection. Most of the pitties/bullies I have had have been more touchy feely than my rotts overall but ALLLLLLL of my dogs have always been very affectionate and stay pretty close. It can be annoying when I almost break my neck but I have found making dinner without at least one dog sitting on my feet is just not as much fun! LOL


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## meganc66 (Mar 6, 2009)

i was JUST saying something last night about how my dogs deem it necessary to walk RIGHT in front of my legs at alll times. i was walking merrily with my dinner plate full of food and Rudi planted herself right on my foot as i was walking and i almost lost it! ugh! heehee. i love em though


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

^^ I swear I think they do that on purpose hoping you'll drop some food. ^^


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

Actually, if you've ever watched a show on wolves or ferrel dogs... touching is associated with pack order. A dog requires being touched by their higher ranking pack members, especially alpha, to reassure them that they are loved and protected, to put it in laymens terms. With our beloved breeds, it seems to stand out a bit more.. and I've noticed with EVERY pittie I've owned or come across, they sit on the owner's feet, or lay under them, get under their owner's feet while walking. That goes hand in hand with their overall personality of wanting to please their owner!! They have to be underfoot, so to speak, all the time to make sure they're around to do whatever the owner may want/need at the moment, no matter how big or small the task! They are a companion animal first and foremost, and we shouldn't forget though. While it does tend to frustrate us and we yell at them to find a hole or go to their kennel or condemn them to the outside for a while to get them out of the way... they thrive on our attention, and that is the most important thing we must remember when dealing with our bullies!! 

So, in short... yes it is a pack thing, and is in some extended way, associated with dominance, but reverse from what was assumed/suggested/asked. I hope that helps to answer your question and clear up any confusion. Any more questions, please ask.. and I'll be more than happy to answer to the best of my ability.


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## DaddyDiezel (May 4, 2009)

> Ever tripped over them? If they're not sitting on your feet then they're walking under them.


:rofl:

Yeah, this happens. Other dogs that I had never really did this, if anything they would stay in front of me as I/we walked. Also, K9's are trained to stay on the left side of his commanding officer...maybe that's why I've never seen a APBT in uniform ?

I think it may be a 'pit' thang. Kinda annoying at times, but it's good to know I have a lil' bodyguard.

"DON'T KICK THE BABY" LoL


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## Carriana (May 13, 2008)

When I snuggle with Loki he has to have his head either on my neck or he will burrow his face under my arm. He is so strong there is no stopping him, which is really fun if I am watching tv, because then the sound of his breathing is right in my ear and I can't hear the tv, LOL. It was pretty adorable when he was little, but now sometimes I fear being smothered. Ha ha!


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## MISSAPBT (May 10, 2009)

tell me about it, expecially when our 2 are playing they HAVE to be leaning on me or my partner to play, its so weird. or when i go sit down with them they both have to be the closest, so you can imagine what thats like! haha

im scared of getting smothered by Stage, hes so big (thinks hes still a little puppy) he is 4 and a half now :hammer:


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

ThaLadyPit said:


> Actually, if you've ever watched a show on wolves or ferrel dogs... touching is associated with pack order. A dog requires being touched by their higher ranking pack members, especially alpha, to reassure them that they are loved and protected, to put it in laymens terms. With our beloved breeds, it seems to stand out a bit more.. and I've noticed with EVERY pittie I've owned or come across, they sit on the owner's feet, or lay under them, get under their owner's feet while walking. That goes hand in hand with their overall personality of wanting to please their owner!! They have to be underfoot, so to speak, all the time to make sure they're around to do whatever the owner may want/need at the moment, no matter how big or small the task! They are a companion animal first and foremost, and we shouldn't forget though. While it does tend to frustrate us and we yell at them to find a hole or go to their kennel or condemn them to the outside for a while to get them out of the way... they thrive on our attention, and that is the most important thing we must remember when dealing with our bullies!!
> 
> So, in short... yes it is a pack thing, and is in some extended way, associated with dominance, but reverse from what was assumed/suggested/asked. I hope that helps to answer your question and clear up any confusion. Any more questions, please ask.. and I'll be more than happy to answer to the best of my ability.


Good info...


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## APBTMOMMY (Mar 28, 2009)

Mine is always under my feet or will sit so close to me that he actually pins down my arms to where I cant move. I remember one night I looked at him after he got right on top of me and laid down to go to sleep and said "good lord dog any and closer and you'd be up my butt." He sits in the bathroom with me when I take a bath and sense he isnt able to touch me and laydown next to me he will stand with his two front feet in the tub and lick lick lick my arms until I get out. If i do happen to get up and leave my spot in the bed then of course he lays in my spot and watches me and when I come back to bed I have to fight to get my spot back. Hes a little turd..... but I love him lol..


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## smokey_joe (Oct 14, 2005)

Sadies scared me to death one day in the bathtub. I was taking a bath one morning and had the bathroom door open. I was laying back in the tub getting the shampoo out of my hair with my eyes closed. I feel something touch me, and open my eyes to see Sadies standing over me licking my arm. She likes to watch me take a bath for some reason. It's kinda creepy, actually. I'm afraid she's gonna jump in one day.


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## Carriana (May 13, 2008)

Ha ha! Loki does this with my husband as well. Isn't bath time fun!!!


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

Haha... here's a funny one for ya...








This handsome boy, Bruce, was my first "purebred" APBT, CKC reg'd (supposedly of Wilder/Hemphill/Clouse/McCoy bloodlines, but we know the truth about CKC reg'd dogs). Anyways, I was 8 mos pregnant with my oldest daughter (now 6 y/o) pictured in my avatar, when I brought him home at 6 wks old. He instantly bonded to me and my daughter after she was born, and would sneak into her room and sleep under her crib and come wake me up in the middle of the night if she woke up, even if she didn't cry. When she was about 18 mos old, we had gone to the Caribbean to visit my now ex-husband's family for 3 wks. Upon our return, I wasn't feeling good, cycle was late, etc. Bruce refused to go outside for bathroom breaks, wouldn't eat, and stayed by my side while bathing the 2nd day back (a Monday). I tried soaking in the bathtub for a couple hours while my daughter was sleeping, but to no avail, i still felt like crap. Bruce kept coming in and licking me, not the water out of the tub, but me... and crying and whining and carrying on. Our other dog, Alyia (pit/chow/blue heeler mix) was also in the bathroom the entire time, but not as intense and concerned as Bruce was. I thought maybe he was ready to go outside as he was pacing back and forth in the bathroom and making such a fuss. I got out of the tub, wrapped up in a towel and proceeded to go to the sliding glass door and attempted to let him out. He wouldn't go out. So, I went back to the bathroom, him trailing closely on my heels, and whimpering the whole way. I climbed back in my sauna of a bathtub, and, he propped his head on the side of the tub, stared at me intensely w/a tear in his eye, and let out this strange noise (i can't even describe it). Needless to say, that afternoon when I could function w/out dry heaving, I went to the store, got an EPT and sure enough.. I was.. get this... 8 wks pregnant with my second daughter (the baby pictured in my avatar). How creepy/freaky is that?! It's amazing how these dogs tell us things that we often ignore, or see as strange behavior because we don't understand them. I learned to listen a lot more closely to my dogs when they're trying to tell me something. This particular incident is what really sparked my interest in further understanding a dog's body language and behavior/personality types. I've been studying ever since! 
Sorry.. didn't mean to go off on a tangent.. just wanted to share that "little" story with everyone!


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## brendal121 (Feb 27, 2009)

My dog is always under my foot tripping me up at embarrising tmes but i love her anyways. I wouldn't have it any other way. I'd rather have her by my side then chasing her everywhere.


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## MISSAPBT (May 10, 2009)

WOW thaladypit, that is AMAZING! such a nice story to read!


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## Kimbers dad (Feb 5, 2009)

i cant ever sit on the couch by myself, my girl is always laying right on me. i wouldnt have it any other way though lol


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