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Dog Mounting,
Humping, Offensive Sniffing
Of
course, we all know that dogs are dogs,
not people. However, when it comes to
certain behaviors, humans are sometimes
offended or embarrassed by their pets!
Some of the things that dogs do may seem
ill mannered to humans, but to dogs
they’re simply natural behaviors that
help them to explore their world, learn
about others and establish
relationships. Things such as sniffing
one another’s private areas, mounting
one another and wrestling with other
dogs, sometimes accompanied by play
biting and growling can seem rather
off-putting to humans.
However, since dogs use these behaviors
to establish their pecking order with
other dogs, it’s usually best to “leave
well enough alone.” When humans
interfere by stopping their dog from
interacting with other dogs in these
ways, it can serve to exacerbate the
situation, making the more dominant dog
feel even more the need to assert his
leadership.
For example, when dogs sniff each other
at body parts that humans find
offensive, it’s because they use their
sense of smell to get to know one
another. With their strong olfactory
abilities, dogs can learn a lot about
one another through scent alone.
Questions such as male or female?,
leader or follower?, and young or old?
are all able to be answered by dogs
through sniffing.
Mounting one another is another behavior
that humans sometimes find offensive,
but is natural for dogs. Since dogs are
pack animals, they use shows of
dominance or submission to establish the
pecking order between themselves and
others. It can be easier to let the dogs
work things out on their own once you
understand that the dogs do not intend
to procreate (unless there is a female
in heat, in which case, keep them
separated!) and are not doing it for
recreational reasons.
Another thing to understand is that
dominant leadership has nothing to do
with size or gender in the dog world.
There are plenty of little dogs who have
more dominant personalities than larger
dogs and vice versa. Nothing you can do
will change that.
Once dogs have met one another and have
done their “dominance dance,” they’ll
usually begin playing together. Just
like baby lion cubs will play using
mannerisms such as stalking and
pouncing, so do dogs play using
mannerism of biting, wrestling and
growling. As long as things are not
escalating into a dog fight (which they
usually don’t), there’s no need to
interfere by separating the dogs.
Of course, if your dog does things to
humans, such as greeting them at the
door with an offensive sniff, mounting
your children or play biting with humans
in ways that are far too rough, some
obedience training will be required.
While it’s fine to allow dogs to be
dominant over their dog friends, it is
not acceptable for your dog to consider
himself dominant over the humans in the
household. Implementing some obedience
training and building the amount of
respect your dog has for family members
should alleviate the issue. If you need
help, contact a knowledgeable trainer
for assistance.
All in all, when it comes to potentially
offensive dog behaviors, understanding
that a dog is an animal and this is how
they communicate can help alleviate
embarrassment when these behaviors are
displayed.
Article written by Lori Verni
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