10/05/2023
IS MOUNTING OR HU***NG A SIGN OF DOMINANCE IN DOGS?
Short answer: No.
Mounting or hu***ng is a normal canine behaviour that can occur in both male and female dogs, sterilised and unsterilised, and at any age.
Although mounting has innate biological components, it is not a simple behaviour with one universal motivation. *The context, emotional state and individual history of the dog matter.
MOUNTING IS NOT:
❌ Dominance
❌ An attempt to control you or another dog
❌ “Alpha” behaviour
❌ Something only unsterilised dogs do
❌ Something only male dogs do
❌ Something only younger dogs do
❌ An attempt to embarrass you
❌ Revenge or “getting back at you”
❌ Automatically an attempt to get your attention
SO WHY DO DOGS MOUNT?
Male or female dogs of any age may mount in association with:
• Excitement or high arousal
• Sexual behaviour or sexual rehearsal
• Play
• Frustration
• Stress or anxiety
• Displacement behaviour
• Overstimulation
• Boredom
• Ambivalence or uncertainty about a situation
• Social interaction
• General stimulation — “Yippee, something's happening!”
• Tiredness or difficulty regulating arousal
• Learned reinforcement
• A medical issue
The same behaviour can therefore have very different motivations in different dogs — and even in the same dog in different situations.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?
If mounting has suddenly increased, is happening excessively, or seems difficult for your dog to stop:
1. Keep a record.
Make a note of when it happens, what happens immediately beforehand, who or what is being mounted, and what happens afterwards.
2. Consider a veterinary check-up.
A change in behaviour can sometimes have a medical component, so don't automatically assume that it is simply a training issue.
3. Look at the emotional state behind the behaviour.
A qualified, up-to-date, science-based behaviour professional can help identify the triggers, emotional state and maintaining factors and develop an appropriate behaviour modification plan.
WHAT ABOUT TWO DOGS?
Context matters.
If two dogs are interacting and one repeatedly mounts the other, watch the dog underneath carefully.
If the dog being mounted is showing signs of discomfort, stress or wanting to disengage, calmly interrupt the interaction. The mounting dog may simply be too aroused or may not be responding appropriately to the other dog's communication.
Rather than shouting “OFF!”, redirect the dog towards an appropriate activity such as a toy, chew, sniffing activity or another mentally stimulating behaviour.
However, if the dogs are comfortably interacting, taking turns, and alternating mounting with other normal social behaviours such as chasing, play bows, tumbling and appropriate pauses, there may be no need to intervene simply because mounting has occurred.
BE CAREFUL WITH UNKNOWN DOGS
Mounting an unfamiliar dog at a park can be risky.
The other dog may find the behaviour threatening, irritating or uncomfortable and may respond aggressively. Your dog may therefore be putting himself in a potentially dangerous situation even if his intention is simply excitement or play.
“BUT GOOGLE SAYS IT'S DOMINANCE…”
This is where things get interesting.
Many Google searches about mounting still produce “dominance” as an explanation.
But behaviour is rarely that simplistic.
Dogs mount pillows, toys, blankets and furniture.
Are they trying to dominate the cushion? 🙂
Dominance is not a universal explanation for every behaviour we don't immediately understand.
Dogs are individuals with individual learning histories, environments, emotional states and motivations. The same behaviour can serve different functions in different circumstances.
So rather than asking:
“How do I stop my dog being dominant?”
ask:
“What is triggering this behaviour, and what is my dog experiencing emotionally?”
That question gets us much closer to understanding the actual dog in front of us.
AND WHAT ABOUT STERILISATION?
Many guardians immediately assume that mounting means their dog needs to be sterilised.
Sterilisation may influence some sexually motivated behaviours, particularly where reproductive hormones are involved, but it is not a guaranteed treatment for mounting.
If the behaviour is being driven by excitement, frustration, stress, play, habit, high arousal or another factor, sterilisation may not resolve it.
Don't assume. Assess. Ask why.
Behaviour is communication. Let's understand the individual dog before attaching a label to the behaviour.
Not every behaviour needs to be labelled “dominant” simply because we don't yet understand it. 🙂
