Expert: Lee Charles Kelley - 4/13/2008

Question
QUESTION: I have a 4 month old male mastiff puppy and he started humping behavior when 3 months and it is getting worse.  The most odd part is he is exposing his male organ all the time even when not humping or trying to.  It is out more than in lately and it is really disturbing and causing people to shy away from him.  Is this normal or could he have a problem?  Is there anyway to correct this behavior since he doesn't know when he is exposed.  Any help is appreciated.

ANSWER: Hi, Natalie,

Thanks for the question.

Who or what is he humping? How long have you had him? Have you ever scolded or punished him for housebreaking accidents, or for nipping you in play, or mouthing your hands?

Generally speaking, the behavior you're concerned about is normal. Most male pups display these types of behaviors at some point. However your mastiff seems to be a bit outside the normal range, which is why I asked if you've ever scolded or punished him. That's because these forms of "training" often make a puppy more nervous or anxious, and can increase the intensity and duration of these types of behaviors.

If he were my dog I'd ignore the "lipstick" coming out of its case. That's not under the dog's direct control. On a certain level trying to get him to NOT do that would be like trying to teach him NOT to breathe. What I'd also do is take note of those times when the lipstick comes out and ask myself how or what the dog is feeling at that moment.

These behaviors (the humping, and to some extent the exposed penis) are the result of an overload of nervous or emotional tension. So I'd try to find some fun and acceptable ways to reduce the dog's tension, like playing fetch and tug-of-war. And whenever he started humping anything I'd try to redirect him into one of these games instead. Of course, that won't always work. There'll be times when he'll be so overworked he won't be able to manage his emotions. Then he needs a time out. Don't make a big deal out of it, just put him behind a puppy gate, or into his crate, give him something to chew on, and wait till he settles down on his own before you let him out.

I look forward to hearing back from you on this.

LCK

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Well, he has not been overly scolded.  We learned about the Mastiff's sensitive temperaments and have restrained from any type of contact corrections.  just a firm voice saying "no".  We have also been using the kennel for time outs and to help house train.  He has been doing very well.....  come to think of it, lately he has been very leery of our cat.  Our male cat, hisses a lot and has been patting at him (although he is declawed), it scares him tremendously.  There is nothing else I can really think of that could be triggering nerves.  Our vet told us that it could also be a sign of being very relaxed and that he should grow out of it.  He isn't humping too much and it is usually his pillow when he does......it is mostly the "lipstick" exposure that we thought was odd.

Answer
Your description of the cat's behavior, and your mastiff's nervousness about being "clawed" makes a lot of sense. I didn't know he was humping the pillow, though. But again, this indicates to me that he's got some sort of excess nervous or emotional tension that needs to be redirected into a brief game of tug or fetch.

If I were you I'd also use redirections instead of the firm "No!"

I hope this helps,

LCK