# How can I stop my neutered male puppy from humping other male dogs?



## EasyBreezy (Mar 19, 2011)

I have a 10 month old chihuahua mix (i think lol) thats neutered, but he humps my friends 1 year old male. It's really embarrassing. I realize that its because he's trying to exert dominance over him, but I have no idea how to stop it.

When he's around that dog, the only thing on his mind is humping him. He won't listen to me, he won't do anything else but try to hump him, he doesn't even care about food. The dog will try to get away, but my dog will chase him around trying to hump him. If I say no or try to push him away, he'll just escape from me and go back to humping him.

If I pick him up and hold him in my arms, he'll whimper and stare at the other dog and follow his every movements and struggle to get out of my arms so he can go hump him. If I put him in a crate or in a close off area, he'll cry bloody murder and try to get out. When he calms down and I let him out, he'll immediately run to the other dog and start humping again. 

I have no idea what to do. I want him to play with the other puppies.


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## KodiBarracuda (Jul 4, 2011)

I am going to go out on a limb and say its not because he is trying to exert dominance over him. I am going to say that it is probably play humping and not something I would discourage. IMO. I don't have any hints on how to get rid of it, because my dogs only do it in extreme excitement, but it is a pretty common thing and I wouldn't be embarrassed about it. But thats just me.


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## EasyBreezy (Mar 19, 2011)

It's embarrassing because everyone makes fun of my dog and the owner of the dog thats being humped freaks out and doesn't like it


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

Even if it is play humping, I think it IS something you should discourage. Unwanted humping is considered rude behavior by other dogs. So, if your dog humps another dog who doesn't want that attention he could warn your dog, by growling or some similar dog gesture, and if your dog doesn't heed the warning, it could cause a fight.

Yes, puppies and adult dogs do hump out of excitement, and play. It's not just all about dominance. Since you have a 10 month old PUPPY, I'd say it's play and excitement. But, even still, it's your job to teach your puppy manners, so that it doesn't cause him problems.

Watch your puppy's body language so you can prevent the humping before it even starts. When you see him start to go toward another dog with that extra excitement, and is acting like he's wanting to hump, it's time to intervene. Now, my first try would be at distracting him by asking him to perform another command, like "sit", because he can't hump if he's sitting. That's called: asking for an incompatible behavior. Or, you could ask for any command that he can do: shake, down, sit, roll over, look, whatever, and of course, reward with a super yummy treat. Not just a regular treat, but a high value treat.

However, you said he doesn't really seem to listen or respond to anything. My guess is that's because he already started humping, and you just try to stop him after he's already started. Distracting him might work if you catch him BEFORE he starts. But, if not, I'd remove him from the room, for 20-30 seconds. Then, bring him back. Every time he goes for the humping, remove him, 20-30 seconds. Repeat, repeat, repeat. I know, it's a hassle to interrupt your visit with friends to deal with your dog every few seconds, but you DO want to stop it, right? And, you can't stop it if you don't do something. The goal is, the puppy will realize, after being removed a few times, that he has to lose human contact and doggy contact if he humps, so he will stop. But, it might take more than a few times, it depends....


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## EasyBreezy (Mar 19, 2011)

I'll try the removing him everytime he humps thing. But yeah, as soon as he sees the other dog, all bets are off and he doesn't care about anything else in the world besides humping him.


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## Keechak (Aug 10, 2008)

If we knew each other I would suggest letting your Chi play with my older male. He will allow a puppy to be a puppy unless it starts being rude then he'll growl and correct it. Ideally this puppy should learn from a good tempered older dog who is patient but will give appropriate corrections when needed. However I know what's ideal isn't always possible.


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## Nazca in Breck (Mar 25, 2010)

You should just keep him on his leash.


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## crazy5 (Dec 17, 2010)

I would use both suggestions you got, keep a leash on him and as soon as he does it take the leash and walk him right out of the room and repeat as many times as needed.


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## hanksimon (Mar 18, 2009)

I agree with Doxie and Keechak. Doxie's method gives you a little more control, and Keechak's approach socializes the dog so that he learns his manners.


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## EasyBreezy (Mar 19, 2011)

This is my first puppy so I'm terrible at dog training  When he does something bad, he knows it and runs away from me. Even if I try to approach him in a calm manner or pretend to go to another room or something, he's always prepared to run from me when he knows he's doing something I don't like.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

Well, puppies (and dogs in general) are excellent at reading our emotions. So, if he does something you don't like, he KNOWS you don't like it from your reaction and/or your previous reactions. BUT, he doesn't know it's "bad". Dogs don't have the same cognitive abilities as us. Oh, they're smart, but they don't have the same thinking process as we do. They definitely don't have a concept of what's "right vs. wrong" or "bad vs. good". All they know is what we like and don't like from them.

So, try thinking of it in terms of _managing_ your puppy. Instead of just trying to correct him when he's doing something you don't like try preventing it in the first place. Watch him more closely so you can get to him before he goes for the shoes, or before he drags the empty toilet paper roll out of the bathroom trash, or before he pees, or before he tries to eat the remote control. (Yes, most of those have been our own personal experiences! LOL!)

It's much easier to prevent through managing than try to correct a behavior once a puppy gets it into his head that it's fun! Because one of our little guys really loved toilet paper rolls!!! I know!

Anyway, instead of having to chase him down because he's run away from you after doing something you don't like, prevent him from doing it in the first place. If it's the humping you're talking about, you can leave his leash on, so that you have control, OR if you're watching him super closely, you'll know when he's going for them hump and you can body block him away with your own body, and then remove him. The leash will help.


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## maggie3kais (Aug 19, 2011)

Bump on this thread. I'm having the same problem with my 8 month old intact male. I'm not planning on getting him neutered in the near future, so any other advice besides that would be really helpful. When we go to the dog park he usually just plays and runs around. But sometimes he'll find one dog he really really likes and will continuously try and hump them. They are usually males so I don't think its all his crazy male hormones. But I'm not sure what to do about it. When I'm close enough I'll either tell him to leave it or physically remove him from the other dog but most of the time he'll be too far away for me to do anything. Most of the dogs don't even care. Some of them will give him a warning and he will back off and just try to play with them. I apologize to the owners and most of them don't care. But then there are some that get really embarrassed, especially after he is so persistent. 

Any ideas on how to get him to stop? Is it something he will grow out of? My boyfriend thinks we should leave immediately after he starts. Opinions on that? I'm not really sure what else I can do about it.


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## doxiemommy (Dec 18, 2009)

As I said to the original poster, it's probably just excitement and puppy play. At 8 months yours is still a puppy. BUT, most dogs consider unwarranted humping to be rude behavior, so if your dog humps a dog that isn't happy about it, and your dog doesn't heed the warnings, the dog could snap at him.

It's always best to stop that behavior immediately. If your dog doesn't respond to leave it, then, I would remove him from that situation, maybe move to a different area away from the dog he's trying to hump. If that doesn't solve the problem, I'd leave the dog park, and try again another day.


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