Why Are Pitbulls So Clingy? (6 Ways To Reduce Such Behavior)

Do your Pitbulls follow you everywhere? Do they follow you to every room even you go in the kitchen or in the bathroom? If yes then maybe you have a velcro dog

Why Are Pitbulls So Clingy? (6 Ways To Reduce Such Behavior)

In this article, we are going to learn why some Pitbulls become very clingy or velcro. Why Are Pitbulls So Clingy. We will also learn if you should be or not be concerned about it. You will get to know what to do if your Pitbulls become clingy if it seems to become a problem for you.

But before that, let me tell you what is a clingy or velcro Pitbull?

What Is A Clingy Pitbull Or A Velcro Pitbull?

Why Are Pitbulls So Clingy? Any pit bull dog who wants to be with its owner or by its owner’s side all the time is considered clingy Pitbulls or velcro Pitbulls. If your dog follows you from room to room then it is confirmed that it is a very clingy behavior.

At first, it might sound very cute but later on, it can become a problem.

There are lots of certain breeds that are more likely to be velcro dogs or clingy dogs because they have been bred or developed to become more cute and dependent on their owner.

This kind of breed has been developed to work alongside its owner all the time or all day long.

The symptoms of velcro dogs seem very similar to separation anxiety and it is very important to understand the difference between separation anxiety and velcro Pitbulls.

Clinginess V/S Separation Anxiety

Look, at first, clinginess and separation anxiety may seem very similar because the symptoms are very similar but actually not exactly the same. Normally, separation anxiety occurs when your Pitbulls get separated from their owner.


This is how they react to be away from the owner. Separation anxiety can cause your Pitbulls to engage in anxious behavior when they are left alone like whining, destructive, urinating, and defecating in the house. Separation anxiety can also cause your dog to engage in being very destructive activities.


While on the other hand, clingy Pitbullss always wants to be around you whenever you are at home. They don’t want to leave your side. But on the other hand, they also don’t panic when you are not there or when you are at work.


The most common difference between separation anxiety and the clinginess is your Pitbulls is more likely to fell asleep or lazy when you are not around if they are suffering from separation anxiety while in the case of being clingy dog or velcro dog, they are not going to become sad or lazy when you will be not available for them. Clingyness can also become a concerning problem when it takes a turn to separation anxiety.

If noticing your clingy dog becoming very panicked or anxious when they are left alone that it’s time for you to concentrate on this kind of behavior because it’s the time to suspect separation anxiety and you must take professional help as soon as possible.

A good veterinarian can help you with this kind of clingy behavior as well as can implement a behavioral modification to reduce this kind of anxiety. But, fortunately, not all clingy dog is going to develop separation anxiety.

9 Separation Anxiety Symptoms In Dogs

Here are the most common symptoms of separation anxiety in dogs of Pitbulls

1. Pacing around
2. Your dog becoming very anxious when you are ready to leave
3. Urinating when you are not at home
4. Defecating when you are gone
5. Drooling or accessing painting
6. Escape attempts
7. destructive manner or destruction
8. Howling or barking when you are gone
9. our Pitbulls showing inappropriate behavior only when you are not there

5 Common Symptoms of Clingyness Or Velcro Dogs

Here are the five most common reasons symptoms of velcro dogs syndrome or excessive clinginess:

1. Always wanting to be there where the action is
2. Sleeping in your room at all the times
3. Constantly wanting or needing to be next to you
4. Following room you from room to room
5. Anticipating when you may be getting up

11 Reason Why Are Pitbulls So Clingy

It is very certain important to take a little deeper look at the potential reason behind your Pitbulls becoming so clingy suddenly. In order to give yourself a best or a better chance of addressing the issue, you must learn what are the common reasons behind your Pitbulls my becoming suddenly so clingy.

Fear and Anxiety

Fear and anxiety both are too sure firebase that can really Cause Your Pitbulls to be very clingy with you. As soon as they will see you as their Guardian of security against any potential threats, you might notice your Pitbulls becoming very clingy to you.

There are certain times in a year when fear and general anxiety can occur more than the others like in a bonfire night when there will be more Fireworks or on the thundering night when there will be lots of noises or in Christmas when a lot of people will be coming and going in visiting your home.

At that moment, your Pitbulls might become very clingy because of feeling any potential threat or maybe upset.

Stress

Just like humans, stress can also affect dogs. Most of the time, stress can also make your Pitbulls suddenly become very clingy to you. So, it is very important for you to notice if your Pitbulls feel insecure in life or if they are feeling happy with everyone in the household or not.

Look for the possibility that your dog may feel bullied away by some people or another pet or even one of the children. Always look & Make sure that your home situation is always stable and calm so that your Pitbulls always feel relaxed and comfortable at home.

Insecurity

We all know that Pitbulls are dogs and dogs are an animal that cry on routine and if anything happens to change the routine, it is directly going to affect your Pitbulls.

Your Pitbulls can easily feel insecure about anything. So, most of these changes that you should always look for might be someone leaving your home or getting another pet, or moving away.

Even these kinds of subtle changes can really have a pronounced effect on some Pitbulls, so it is very certain important for you to look for little reason.

So always look for anybody leaving your home or returning home at different times or walking your Pitbulls at a different time or if you are changing their food suddenly.

Even the small changes can make Pitbulls feel very insecure and can also make them clingy very gradually.

Age

As Pitbulls get older and older, their mind begins the natural decline into old age and you might be magnifying your own becoming more clingy and requiring demanding more comfort in Assurance from you than when they were younger.

Well, this is not going to be the always case for all the Pitbulls but if your Pitbulls is finding it hard to get around you or feeling more vulnerable due to not be able to take care of Themselves then they might become very clingy.

At this moment, you should talk to your vet to find out what you can do in order to make the whole transition to maturity as comfortable and stress-free for your Pitbulls’ changing needs as possible.

Noise

In thunderstorms night, your dog or Pitbulls can easily feel insecure and might prefer themselves to hide themselves away or not to be around people until they start feeling better.

In this kind of moment, many Pitbulls will be seeking out a family member or handler for comfort or security if there feeling frightened or sick.

So, you should never regard this kind of clingy behavior as the irritating one as it may also be a potential indicator of health problems. If you are concerned about it or if you are in doubt then get your Pitbulls to your local veterinarian to ensure that there is nothing wrong.

Bitches In Season

If you already bitch in your home then expect them to be more clingy with you or may always seek a place by your side when the season appears

If you confidently and correctly map the battle of the Seasons, you will be able to identify whether or not the clinginess is related to a season.

Separation Anxiety

Nobody can deny that some Pitbulls have the potential to develop a true functional hyper attachment to their owners which can also cause anxiety when their owner is out of Sight. Some of these dogs up can also be very clingy dogs or velcro dogs.

If your Pitbulls are unable to follow you or unable to locate you then they have been suffering from being clingy behavior but if there showing the symptoms of separation anxiety that they can also have separation anxiety and not just velcro dog syndrome.

Health Concern

If your Pitbulls suffering from any kind of health concern then you might notice your dog becoming very clingy to you.

This kind of health concern can be very painful for your Pitbulls and it is somehow related to clingy behavior. So you should never ignore any kind of clingy behavior because it might be an alarm for you to get your Pitbulls checked by your local veterinarian.

Lack Of Mental Stimulation

You Pitbulls can easily get bored or feel bored when they are not given enough exercise or when there is nothing much for them to do.

They can not only start barking on howling but most dogs can also look for something to do and in that order, they will lead and follow you around wherever you go, even they don’t have anything to do with you.

So, a lack of mental stimulation can also promote more clinginess in your Pitbulls. This is a reason why your Pitbulls may become very clingy to you because you will be the only main source of their entertainment.

So if you notice your Pitbulls becoming very excited when they are following you around then it can be clear signs that he is bored and looking for something to do.

If this is the case then you should always check some indoor games or provide them with some toys that can help them in being busy or you can also play with them to keep your Pitbulls busy all the time.

Vision Aur Hearing Changes

Any kind of age-related changes as I told you, like hearing or vision loss can be very scary Monsters for your Pitbulls. So, they may also choose to be your side for extra comfort and security.

Dog Breeds

There are some dog breeds that have been developed to be more dependent so that they can work side by side with their owners. They mostly rely on their owner’s direction for guidance and owners’ body language.

The Toy dog breed that has been developed in now has been selectively breeding to be lapdogs. There are also some breeds like Akitas and German Shepherd that are commonly known for their attachment level to one person.

When Should You Be Concerned About Your Pitbulls Clingyness?

Let me tell you, clinginess behavior can always take a turn towards separation anxiety and if your Pitbulls is suffering from separation anxiety then you will always want to look into getting help by which I mean professional help to modify the behavior of separation anxiety. It is also one of the most common reasons for Consulting a good veterinarian.


If you don’t read it properly then they will be staying by his side. This kind of separation anxiety is similar to anxiety disorder in humans and it can also become very serious if not treated properly.


Periodically, if you suspect your Pitbulls developing a velcro dog syndrome then make sure to identify the cause, and if you are noticing that the main cause of being more clinginess is boredom of then you should always give them more mental stimulation or job to do.

Pitbulls that are bored can always develop destructive behavior or clinginess behavior if left unattended.

6 Ways To Reduce Your Pitbulls Clinginess

Often most of the time, dealing with the velcro dog is not a big deal. Velcro dog is the one who want to be by your side.

But there will be some times or some instances where you might want your Pitbulls to stay in one place or want them to keep them in distance. So, what you can do in order to reduce this kind of Clinginess

If you really want to teach your dog to be more independent then you should concentrate on the training as well as some ways that can help in reducing your Pitbull’s clingy behavior.

Here are some activities as well as training techniques that can help you in making your Pitbulls less clingy.

Teach Your Pitbulls Stay Command

A Pitbulls is following you in the kitchen area or into the bathroom then work on the stay command. When you will be in the kitchen area or in the bathroom, you can teach your Pitbulls to stay at a distance.

Start with the distances and gradually you can move further away. you should always give a dog lot of praise whenever they stay away from you or keep a distance from you

Reward them with some treats but always make sure that the rewards are high-value treats that can let him or her know that staying is the best choice possible.

Plus, making your Pitbulls stay command and rewarding will give your Pitbullss some kind of notion that they will be rewarded if they repeat the behavior later on.

Teaching Pitbulls To Go To The Special Place

You should always provide your Pitbulls with their own area where they can sleep or rest or eat. You should always use his mat or bed to train him to go to that area.


With training him whenever they obey you, make sure that you are adding some extra treats or his favorite toys. Just like me, if you don’t like your Pitbulls to be in the kitchen while you are cooking then you can also teach her to go on their bed or on their mat

Add More physical Exercises or Extra An Activity To Your Pitbulls Routine

I hope that you will probably hear of a tired dog is a good dog. Noticing your Pitbulls following you around also aware you that your Pitbulls have enough energy to follow you around so why not you use those extra energies in extra exercises.

When your Pitbulls will have physical activity, they will be much more likely to get sleep or relax at home. He might not even notice you when you get up since they will be very tired

Add More Mental Activities Or Mental Stimulation To Your Pitbulls Routine

Your Pitbulls can easily feel bored when you are not around or when there is nothing much to do for them. So, you should add more mental stimulation to their routine. Through meaningful activities, toys, and play, you can do it.

So, when you keep the brain active, it makes them tired just as physical activity does. Agility, Hide and Seek, playing, learning new tricks, knowing work, and basic obedience training are some ways to mentally tire out your Pitbulls.

Play Games That Rely On Distances

Hide and Seek, fetch, and chase games are all the fun games that can keep your tone busy as well as reinforce then having fun while you are at distance.

It can also be a great choice for your Pitbulls because it will give your Pitbulls something to focus on while on their own and they will be away from you.

Give Your Pitbulls A Purpose

Lots of Pitbulls thrive when given a purpose. If your Pitbulls is also following you from room to room or if it enjoys you give them the main purpose. Put the rules or some boundaries at home because it’s time to make them aware of what they should do and what they shouldn’t.

So, no dog in the kitchen or in the bathroom area & put some bedroom off-limit rule or no dogs on the couch as it might give the purpose to keep some distance from you.

FAQ

Final Thoughts

I hope that I managed to give you some space of information about your Pitbulls’ clinginess as well you got to know some valuable information about it. If I did a good job then do share this post because it is going to encourage me to write more about them.

Apart from that, if you have any questions regarding them then you can comment below and let me know and I will try to give your answer as soon as possible. See you in the next post, until then, take care, and goodbye.