The common belief is that humping is a male thing; Hence, most dog owners are typically in for a rude shock, when they encounter their female dogs humping objects, male pooches, and even humans!
Now, why do female dogs hump things? Female dogs typically hump objects to relieve stress, as play behavior, as a sign of heat, to gain their owner’s attention, or simply because they’re not getting enough exercise. Additionally, humping in female dogs can be a sign of compulsive order behavior or a symptom of a urinary tract infection. Humping in female dogs is seldom a sign of sexual attraction to humans.
Usually, there’s nothing to be immediately scared of, when you notice your female dog humping things, but you do have to monitor the situation closely to ensure it doesn’t degenerate. Also, you need to be able to tell when humping is considered normal behavior in female dogs, and when it is something you need to discourage, and this is covered extensively in today’s article.
However, before we go into all this, let’s start off by taking a look at the reasons for one of the most common humping displays by female dogs – humping stuffed animals and toys.
Why Does My Girl Dog Hump Stuffed Animals?
Your female dog may hump stuffed animals to show that it is going through a stressful period.
Dogs are quite sensitive animals, and major or minor changes in your girl dog’s life may induce stress in your furry friend. And as a means of letting out the stress, your girl may take to humping a familiar sight in her stuffed animals, in a bid to derive comfort and reassurance.
Occurrences that typically induce stress in dogs include moving to a new environment, bringing home a new baby or pet, meeting a stranger and major or minor changes in your doggie’s routine.
If you notice your girl dog humping stuffed animals or its toys after major changes in both your lives, then the best thing is to let such a pooch be. However, it is also very important that you make such a doggie as comfortable as possible, while providing it with the required attention to ensure the stress doesn’t degenerate into something serious or that the humping doesn’t become a compulsive disorder.
Why Does My Girl Dog Hump A Pillow?
Your girl dog may hump a pillow if it hasn’t been getting enough exercise or playtime with other dogs or toys or due to the presence of an underlying health condition.
Inadequate Exercising Or Playtime
Dogs are quite energetic, and a girl pooch, same as its male counterparts, need to be regularly engaged in both physical and mental exercises as an outlet for this high energy level.
If your girl dog isn’t getting a sufficient level of exercise or physically engaging plays, then it may take to humping pillows and other objects as a means of expending part of that energy and getting rid of its boredom.
Underlying Health Conditions
In other cases, your girl dog may hump a pillow as a way of relieving an itch or a physical pain that may be present due to an underlying health condition. Medical conditions that are typically indicated by itching include skin allergies, incontinence, priapism, or a urinary tract infection.
These conditions can be potentially serious if left untreated, and a dog suffering from either of them needs prompt medical attention to maintain a good quality of life.
Now, diagnosing a health condition just by observing mounting by your female dog can be quite tricky, hence you have to be on the lookout for other signs of a urinary tract infection. And these symptoms typically include:
- Excessive licking of the genital region
- Frequent urination
- Dehydration
- Difficulties urinating
- Bloody urine, and
- Fever
Why Do Girl Dogs Hump Boy Dogs?
Generally, girl dogs hump boy dogs as a way of asserting their dominance, an act of sexual socialization or simply play behavior.
To Establish Dominance
Dogs are hierarchical by nature, and a girl pooch may hump and harass male dogs in a bid to show them that she’s boss. The mounting and humping position represents dominance among dogs, and by assuming this position, the girl pooch is showing the boys that she’s top dog.
Humping to establish dominance typically creates bad blood among pooches, and this can result in bloody fights; To prevent this from happening, you should discourage domination-based humping among your dogs.
Sexual Socialization
Additionally, female puppies may hump male puppies as a way of teaching the appropriate sexual behavior for adulthood.
Humping, in this case, typically teaches the dogs sexual interactions, proper mating techniques and dominant placement for future sexual activities.
Play Behavior
Dogs are quite playful by nature, and a female dog humping male dogs may be nothing more than an indicator that she’s having the time of her life.
In the same vein, poorly socialized girl dogs may mount other boy dogs in response to play triggers – and this is simply because they don’t know how else to react!
Why Does My Girl Dog Hump Me And No One Else?
The reason your girl dog humps you and no one else is probably because you haven’t been giving her enough attention or because you’ve recently returned home after a long trip.
Lack Of Attention
Most dogs demand constant displays of affection from their owners to keep them happy; A belly rub, a pat on the back, a scratch behind the ear or even letting your dog lick you are all ways of showing your furry friend that you care, and they go a long way in keeping your doggie happy.
However, when you fail to do these things on a regular basis, your girl dog will begin to feel neglected and depressed, and may take to humping you as a way of reminding you to rub its belly.
Humping in female dogs is typically reinforced, if you’ve previously shown disdain or strongly condemned the act with harsh words in the past – your girl dog probably feels negative attention is better than no attention.
Failure to provide your girl dog with the necessary attention is, to say the least, mean. And what is to say that humping as a result of neglect, won’t lead to aggression or even the development of certain health conditions in your doggie?
To prevent things from escalating to this point, you should make sure to give your female dog the required care and attention – it wouldn’t hurt to give your girl belly rubs every now and then, would it?
Returning Home After Prolonged Absence
If you’ve been away from home for an extended period, your girl dog may hump you as a way of showing its excitement that you’re back.
Dogs typically lose control – in a good way – when their favorite human returns home after a long period of separation, and humping may be one of the series of actions a girl may carry out, to show excitement that its owner is back.
Is My Girl Dog Sexually Attracted To Me?
Dogs are rarely sexually attracted to humans, neither can they fall in love with humans; Hence, your female dog humping you is usually not a sign of sexual attraction to you.
Why Does My Female Dog Hump Me When I Kiss My Boyfriend?
Your girl dog may also hump you when you kiss your boyfriend simply because it is jealous and wants in on the action or as a protective act.
Dogs have learned to associate kissing with affection, and your female dog may hump you when you’re kissing your boyfriend, as a way of drawing attention, and asking to be let in on the action; This is particularly true when your doggie is used to being on the receiving end of those kisses.
Funny as it sounds, your female dog may also hump your boyfriend when you’re both kissing, as a way of asserting dominance and showing that she deserves to be on the receiving end of those kisses, instead of your lover.
Protectiveness
Some dogs aren’t comfortable with watching their humans get intimate, and your female dog may perceive the display of affection between you and your boyfriend as physical conflict; This, in turn, may result in your female dog wedging between both of you and humping, in a bid to ‘resolve the conflict’ and protect you – Hey! Leave my human alone!
Why Does My Female Dog Lick Me Then Try To Hump Me?
Your female dog licking, then humping you is a typical display of affection or a sign of an obsessive compulsive disorder.
Affection
One of the reasons we all love dogs is the fact that they are quite affectionate, and they have several ways of showing affection for their favorite humans; One of such ways is licking and humping.
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
As stated earlier, dogs generally lick to show attention. But when your female dog attempts to follow up the lick with humping, it may be suffering from an obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Like humans, dogs can also pick up on bad habits. And your female doggie’s compulsive disorder may stem from the fact that, over time, it has derived pleasure from humping objects, humans, and other animals.
You need to sit up, and start paying attention, once you notice obsessive humping in your female pooch. And, most times, you will end up having to recruit a professional dog behaviorist or trainer to break this potentially destructive pattern.
Do Female Dogs Hump When Coming Into Season?
Yes, unspayed female dogs tend to mount and hump inanimate objects and other dogs when they are coming into season.
As your female puppy grows, its sex hormones also become more developed. And once these sex hormones become fully developed, a female dog typically starts displaying the urge to mate, hence mounting and humping.
Humping typically takes place during the courtship stage, and a female dog will mount and hump its male suitor to indicate its willingness to mate. And if you own multiple dogs, humping by your female dog may easily motivate the other pooches to pick up the act.
Other Signs That Your Female Dog Is Coming Into Season
Apart from the humping displays, other signs that can tell you when your female dog is in heat include:
- Excessive friendliness with other dogs
- Nervousness
- Frequent turning of the tail to the side
- Occasional bloody discharge from the vulva
- Receptiveness to male dogs
- A swollen vulva
- Frequent urination
Also, dogs, just like humans, derive pleasure from rubbing their genitals against things. And a female dog may hump objects, humans, or other animals in a bid to derive autoerotic pleasure – in other words, masturbation.
How Do I Stop My Female Dog From Humping Things?
You can typically stop your female dog from mounting humans by training it to sit on cue, distracting it with toys or treats, eliminating stress triggers and by spaying the doggie.
The methods stated above work under varying circumstances. And the particular method you should employ to curb mounting by your female pooch depends on what motivates your doggie to mount.
How To Stop Mounting During Playtime?
If your female dog tends to hump other pooches or its stuffed toys during playtime, then the recommendation is that you leave such a dog alone. As stated earlier, dogs are quite playful and expressive, and a female dog may mount as a means of channeling its excitement.
However, if you’re uncomfortable with the idea of your female dog humping your pillow or other canines in doggie parks, you can try any of the methods listed below to curb the act.
Distraction
Immediately you notice your female dog about to hump the pillow or another dog, you can toss the doggie’s favorite toy at it, as an attempt to divert its attention elsewhere. Alternatively, you can initiate a game your female dog enjoys playing or give it a chewable toy – whichever one is more convenient at that moment!
Training
Teaching your dog to sit on cue or to obey basic doggie commands, can also come in handy if you ever have to stop your female pooch from mounting. Training of your female dog should be started as early as possible and should be done in collaboration with positive reinforcement to encourage acts of obedience.
Eliminate Stress
If your female dog tends to mount when stressed, identifying and minimizing exposure to the cause of its stress may help reduce mounting.
Understandably, identifying the cause of stress in your dog may take time, but once you can pinpoint the trigger, getting rid of such a trigger, or finding ways for your dog to be more comfortable around the trigger will certainly help in the long run.
How To Stop Sexually Motivated Mounting In Female Dogs?
For female dogs that mount when they’re in heat or when they come in contact with other female dogs, spaying such dogs may help reduce or completely stop the mounting displays.
Spaying is the sterilization of a female dog via the surgical removal of its ovaries and uterus. And along with the removal of these sexual organs, the female dog’s sexual urges are also eliminated or reduced greatly, thereby helping to curb mounting.
