Reasons Why Dogs Hump and How to Stop It

Every time your four-legged furry best friend hugs your leg, you feel special, and so does he/she. It is their cute gesture of showing love and affection towards you. Well, that is what we assume. This act is also commonly known as humping.

Now, the immediate question that triggers your thought is, why would my dog hump me? Well, there exists a good number of reasons for this very common act found in both male and female dogs.

Why Does My Dog Hump?

Most individuals believe that it is sexual in nature, and their ideology is not absolutely false either. However, dog humping holds different meanings depending on the age group to which your dog belongs. The other reasons that stimulate this act include their surrounding nature, their behavior inspiration, and the level of their involvement in fun activities. The amount of exercise your dog gets also plays a big role in the nature and volume of this humming attitude.

Why do they do it?

Each and every dog does it. Starting from the older age group, this usually denotes an act of dominance. He/ she might do it due to excitement flowing in their blood. The excitement may be due to a variety of reasons, maybe some new friendly guests have arrived, or an act as simple as sharing a delicious snack with them.

When it comes to puppies, this is an absolute playful act or gesture. If you own two or more dogs, you will quite often notice that one of them mounts over the other, and eventually, the other plays its part in the same manner too. No, this doesn’t mean they are humping; they are just having a good time playing around.

Your dog hugging your leg is an act very common; as common as them running around and barking. Don’t get amused when I tell you that this act is equally common in dogs of both genders.  

Excessiveness of anything is not a good thing to be considered. Similarly, if you observe that your pet has been hugging your leg quite too often, it’s time you get some medical attention.

The common medical reasons for this act found in male dogs mainly include prostate problems. In the case of female dogs, it is mostly due to any sort of irritation or infection. For younger dogs who have yet not been spayed or neutered, it can be 100% denoted as an act of sexual pleasure.

Before you fall into an embarrassing situation due to this occurrence, seek medical help as soon as possible. One of the natural and finest remedies to prevent your pet from conducting an act as such so often is to distract him with some fun activities that equally excite and stimulate their senses and keep them engaged at the same time.

Can this become a serious problem? 

There are times when you can become really unlucky as your dog won’t just stop repeating this not-so delightful act. Brief moments of this act are undoubtedly normal; however, excess of it is sort of abnormal and screams for medical attention. Don’t wait around until your dog gets embedded in this habit.

You and your pals surely can share a laugh at it, but that would not usually be a remedy to the problem. Why not step in and redirect his/ her act immediately? Consulting an expert veterinarian is the wisest option that can be taken into consideration. 

How would you stop it?

Just get up and walk away. Yes, it is that simple. Keep doing it every time he rigorously hugs your leg. Unless and until his brain gets the signal that this is unacceptable behavior, they keep doing it.

There are times when they participate in this act with the indulgence of objects and non-living things. This is exactly when it becomes difficult to hate the habit.

Eminent veterinarians have often advised that scheduling a strict routine for your dog that involves a lot of exercises will tire them up and also enable them to focus on other engaging and interesting stuff rather than humping.

Your pet loves you a lot and being his pet owner, it becomes your duty to keep him healthy and well-mannered. Just like humans, some dogs are more sexually driven than others. Train your pet, offer him behavioral training and all things essential to get rid of this problem.

You can even minimize his opportunities by changing the environment and socializing better. Some veterinarians would simply ask you to ignore the problem and ask you to let it go, claiming that it is a normal act.

Being the pet owner, if you think otherwise, seek expert veterinarian help elsewhere. And, if all fails, allow your furry friend to have his private time without overdoing it.

How to conduct training for this act?

It has been observed that most pet owners, especially the ones owning puppies, find this act cute and quite often ignore it. This is a wrongful act on the pet owner’s part. Behaviors like such should be corrected from the very initial stage.

The first step and most crucial step would be to stop laughing at it and showering your pet with attention whilst they do it. This will only encourage them and not give them the signal that it should be stopped.

The next step would be to distract them. Engage them in doing something that they love to do. This will provoke them with an alternative behavior. Thirdly, you can play with them. Go out on the field or in the neighborhood. Take them for a run or parallel other fun activities.

Fourthly, take your time and conduct obedience training. In this internet era, multiple videos are available to learn all about it. You would not have to spend a wholesome and yet give your pet the most efficient training he/ she can get.

The benefit of this training is, your furry friend can feel the positive vibes of calmness and showcase a sophisticated nature when out in public.

The silver lining is that your dog doesn’t even know why he/ she is doing it. They hardly have any kind of strong feelings towards it; neither is aware of the fact that how embarrassing things can get.

With a lot of care, understanding, love, and an immense lot of training, this problem can be effortlessly dealt with at ease. The simple remedy is, distract them. Engage them in other fun activities, a good amount of hardcore exercise, and specialized training. Even if all fails, what are vets for?