The good news... It is NOT Dominance!
The EVEN BETTER NEWS...
IT'S SEX!
That's RIGHT. Humping (despite the obvious implications -that it probably feels good) is S. E. X.
Sex! Sex! Sex! Sex! Did you know that dogs, like most creatures, need to have sex to reproduce?
Reproduction is just one of those things that pops out in play. Play-time is just a rehearsal stage for all of life's survival skills.
During play-time your dog will:
- Play-fight
- Play-hunt
- Play-kill
- Play-mate
For more on Humping >>>> Read my new favorite book, Oh Behave! by Jean Donaldson, author and director of The SF SPCA Academy for Dog Trainers.
This article is for those who have already read these postings:
Are off-leash parks and fenced dog parks safe for your small dog?
What is Predatory Drift?
Should dogs of different sizes be allowed to play together?
Have I seen Predatory Drift?
Many people witness Predatory Drift without knowing what they have seen; frequently it is mislabeled as a routine dog fight. So, what might Predatory Drift look like? Here are some scenarios.
The scenarios below are made up to illustrate what can happen. They are based on incidents that I have witnessed or heard about from colleagues. I have tried very hard to be descriptive, but not graphic. If you have witnessed or lost a dog to Predatory Drift you may not want to read. My intent is not to shock or upset, but to give the reader the opportunity to grasp an understanding of a phenomenon that poses a real risk to small dogs.
Several medium and large dogs playing in an open area -all the dogs are well behaved and playing appropriately. The owners and guardians are interacting with the dogs and monitoring the play. Nearby several small dogs are playing they are tiny but wrestling loudly and roughly. All the dogs are having fun.
Suddenly the small dogs are fighting and one of the little dogs (not even in the fight, but scared) starts screaming and running to her owner. The large dogs, startled by the commotion, stop playing. Suddenly two of the large dogs are running very fast, directly for the small dog that is screaming. The small dog is the treated as if it was a bunny.
This can happen with a puppy or any small dog.
In another scenario the small dog and the large dog are playing together. They chase, wrestle and play very nicely for about 15 minutes. Suddenly during chase the small dog looks scared and starts running quickly in one direction and does not turn to bow and return chase. As the small dog continues running it looks more and more panicked and the larger dog looks more and more serious. The game is no longer a game -the instinct to catch small prey and kill it has been triggered.
Not all scenarios are this slow to build, a large dog can grab and shake any small dog quickly without any warning. Dog fights can be broken-up because there is much noise and posturing and little contact. However, when a large dog grabs a small dog like prey, it will grab it by the neck and shake it. It can take as little as one shake to break a neck.
Finally a couple stops at a corner of a grassy park to let their small dog play. The small dog, while rabbit-sized is genetically a predator and has little instincts for prey-animal freeze (play possum) or flight (squirrely escape). In another corner of the park a large dog catches sight of the small dog bouncing and prancing in the grass. Unlike dogfights, which are loud and proceeded by warning barks and growls, incidents of Predatory Drift are silent and swift. The small dog has no more chance than a rabbit caught by a coyote or wolf.
If you have not read the articles above, please read them now.
