Owning a dog that humps furniture, other dogs or people can lead to comic, but profoundly embarrassing moments. Most people assume that the dog is a sex pest or asserting dominance.
However, there are many reasons for a dog humping, finding the root cause can help to curtail or reduce the behaviour.
If the dog’s behaviour is causing distress, hurting people or causing dog fights then it becomes even more important to manage this behaviour. Mounting and thrusting (humping) can be part of normal play or mating, but it can also be a sign of behavioural problems or impaired welfare (1).
Uncovering the reason for humping in an individual dog involves close observation. Looking at their lifestyle, health, behaviour and triggers can help to pin down the cause. Some causes of humping are easier to manage than others.
Sexual exploration and mating
Humping is part instinctual behaviour and part learned. Both male and female puppies do it whether practising for mating or exploring their body’s response. They find the sexual stimulation pleasurable and may masturbate by humping. It can become a high reward activity like barking, chasing or jumping. It is a normal behaviour for all dogs.
As puppies grow sex hormone levels increase and unneutered dogs will hump to mate or attempt to mate. Entire male dogs will often mount dogs of any sex, whether they are neutered or not. Female dogs mount other dogs, this happens more often when they are in season.
Sexually driven mounting usually involves flirtatious behaviour such as alert posture, licking, play bows and chasing. Erections and even ejaculation are common in male dogs.
Neutering usually reduces mounting. One study found that castration reduces mounting by 50% in almost 70% of male dogs, regardless of age at castration(2).
Habit and pleasure
Some neutered dogs continue to hump as it gives them pleasure. Castrated dogs can still achieve erections and ejaculate so it is often a form of masturbation.
Play
Mounting is a normal part of play behaviour, dogs may mount each other for short periods then stop and then reverse roles. It is unusual to see erection or ejaculation in these situations. As long as both dogs continue to play happily this form of mounting is a sign of a healthy relationship. Chasing, running and stalking may also be seen in normal play.
If a dog is poorly socialised they may hump other dogs excessively and ignore resistant cues. This can cause fighting and injury. These dogs may become over stimulated very easily around other dogs.
Stress or boredom
Humping can be a displacement activity, an out of context behaviour expressed to cope with internal conflict. This can happen when dogs are overstimulated or understimulated. The behaviour offers a release of emotion. This may be seen in dogs who have previously been neglected or abused.
Excitement
A dog may hump when the owner returns, a visitor comes or in response to another exciting event. Some dogs will present you with a toy, bark or jump when excited, others hump.
Attention
Some owners laugh or shout at a humping puppy. This can reinforce the behaviour and make it more likely the dog will repeat it.
Medical issues
A dog with a urinary tract infection may hump. Affected dogs often lick their genitals and appear uncomfortable. Skin allergy and infection can result in dogs’ rubbing their abdomens to alleviate the itch. Neutered and entire dogs can suffer from priapism where they have a persistent erection. This may be the result of mounting or the cause. It is important that a dog is checked by a vet prior to starting behavioural treatment for humping, in case there is a medical reason.
Dominance?
“Dominance theory” is a controversial idea applied to inter-dog relationships. It is not clear if it can be applied to dogs as studies were done in wolf populations with limited resources. If a dog is humping objects or people, then dominance can be ruled out as a cause. People who espouse the theory suggest that dominant dogs mount other dogs as mounting is an indicator of status. However, other proponents of the theory state that dominant dogs are confidant, relaxed and don’t need to display such behaviours to assert themselves.
What should we do about it?
If a dog humps infrequently without harm, injury or excessive embarrassment, then allow them to continue. If the behaviour is causing any difficulties for you, them or other dogs then it should be managed.
1: Work out why it’s happening
Initially, if medical reasons are suspected a veterinary examination is advisable. Neutering an entire dog usually reduces humping.
Secondly, assess the dog’s lifestyle. Is the dog sufficiently exercised, bored or understimulated? Are there stressors in the environment? An entire dog living next to a female in season will be very frustrated. A quiet dog may be overwhelmed by lots of visitors or other dogs. Some dogs are noise phobic and react inappropriately to everyday noises.
2: Distract!
Distracting the dog at the first sign of a humping or when the trigger occurs can be very effective. A toy, chew or treat can be used to prevent the behaviour starting. The dog’s energy is redirected to more acceptable behaviour. Obedience training is excellent for this purpose. If the dog is asked to sit, give a paw or lie down and rewarded they will become more focussed and less excited. They are more likely to repeat the polite behaviour instead of humping.
Alternatively, you can teach a stop word such as ‘leave’ or ‘stop’. If you associate this word with reward, you may be able to stop the behaviour even after the dog has started. Reinforce the command with high value treats. This can be most effective if practised at a calm time then repeated when the dog starts humping.
If a dog humps a person’s leg, walking away or pushing them off can be effective if it is consistent. An object can be removed to prevent humping, soft toys and cushions are often victims.
3: Address problem compulsive behaviours
If humping becomes compulsive, a dog may hump for a large part of the day. This affects their quality of life as well as causing injury. In this case, consulting a qualified behaviourist or trainer is usually essential. Similarly, if a dog becomes aggressive when prevented from humping expert advice is required.
TL:DR:
Humping is a normal dog behaviour. Excessive humping can usually be managed to prevent harm and embarrassment with some investment in observation and training.
Share your experiences and solutions for humping dogs in the comments below, keeping it PG-13 of course.
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Discussion
My 11 month old neutered male and I just returned from the dog park. He is a very confident mini schnauzer. He is tall and long for his breed. And I cannot tell you the number of times that other owners have said “my dog never does that” after encountering my dog for the first time. First sunny day in a long time without wind. There were a lot of dogs at the dog park. This is not the first time this has happened. Sometimes there are about 3-6 dogs who seem to be barely interacting when we show, then all of these big male dogs want to vie for humping my puppy. A total pack of giant dogs so you can barely see mine. I throw a ball to get my puppy to run from the humping once it starts as he seems to not take notice it is happening. Then he might eventually try to fight one or two off. Might roll on his belly and lick the other male dogs parts for a bit. After this goes on for a half an hour he is more likely to just go into a down position and chew his ball or stick. These dogs are twice his weight or more. Some are tall enough to have trouble gripping him in their preferred position. I intervene with throwing his ball, encouraging him to run, and pushing other dogs off him. The owners are often sitting on the sidelines reading books or looking at their phones. I used to just say, “oh it is a dog thing”. Then my puppy started engaging in it as what I consider a learned behavior. So I try to go to dog parks at different times, in different places, with the intention of not seeing these same lazy dog owners and their humping dogs. Sometimes the dogs are so heavy they look like they will hurt him. And at least once he has yelped in pain by the way the were squeezing him at the “hips”. I won’t even comment on all the old women who say “it looks like my dog really likes yours” as my dog is getting humped in the face or back by their geriatric, overweight dog.