If your Labrador has a habit of humping then you’re probably wondering why and how to get it to stop. This post will give you a number of reasons why your Labrador might be doing it and what you can do about it.
So, why does your Labrador hump?
There are a number of reasons why your Labrador might be doing it.
Possible reasons include sexual arousal especially if it’s young, looking to exert dominance which is more probable if it’s older, looking for attention, and being stressed.
And, what can you do to stop your Labrador from humping?
The best way to get your Labrador to stop the humping will depend on the reason that it is doing it.
Some possible solutions that are available to you would include getting up and ignoring the behavior and then rewarding it when it’s being well behaved, redirecting its attention on to performing a task, giving it lots of exercise and giving it toys to be distracted with.
It can actually be quite difficult to figure out the exact cause of your Labrador’s behavior but it’s important that you take the time to consider it since it will help you to get it to stop more easily.
Possible reasons for your Labrador’s humping
Below are some reasons why your might hump you and what would make them more likely to be the main reason.
Arousal
The cause could be that it is aroused. If your Labrador is unneutered and it is still young then this is likely to be the cause but even if it’s old it could still be the reason.
Even though your Labrador won’t try to mate with a human or toy or whatever else it might hump it might still do it as a way to masturbate since it feels good for it (source).
However, It’s important to stop this behavior as soon as it starts since the older it gets the more this behavior will compound on itself and the harder it will be to stop.
You can reduce this behavior by getting it neutered or you can try the ignore or redirect techniques mentioned in the section below.
Dominance
It could also be the case that it is a power play where your Labrador is trying to figure out how much power it has and to exert its power over you or other dogs.
As mentioned on pets webmd the Labrador that is doing the humping might not be the dominant Labrador. Rather, it might be unsure of its status and it is doing the humping to figure it out.
If this is the cause then there will likely be other signs of dominance-seeking behavior such as not being willing to listen to your command, aggression or other power plays like trying to sit on you or where you would normally sit or trying to lay down in a position higher than you.
Regardless, you should take measures to prevent this. You can do that by doing lots of training with it so that it sees you as the one in charge.
Excitement
It’s also not uncommon for Labradors and other dog breeds to start humping when they get excited.
Labradors will often show their levels of excitement by doing outlandish things like humping or rolling in the grass or even mud.
If your Labrador only seems to do the humping when it gets excited then excitement is likely to be the cause. Situations, where it might get excited, could include when you are playing with it or when you arrive home.
To prevent this kind of behavior you should make sure to give it lots of exercise so that you can reduce its hyperactivity and to train it not to by trying the ignore or redirect techniques in the section below. You could also try getting it neutered if you can.
Attention
It could also be the case that it does it in order to get extra attention from you. This would be more likely if it does it more when you have not been giving it much attention and if you tend to give it more attention when it does it.
Instead, it would help to give it attention throughout the day by training it, walking it and playing with it. But, it would help to stop rewarding it with attention when it starts misbehaving unless necessary.
Stress
The cause could also be that something is causing it to be stressed.
If this is the cause then it may have come on suddenly after a recent stressful event or it might be due to something that happened when it was young.
Some things to consider when trying to figure out if this is the cause would be whether or not there has recently had a stressful event like losing a friend, changing its owner or changing its home.
Ways To Get Your Labrador To Stop Humping
Below are some options you have when getting your Labrador to stop humping you.
Neuter it
The first option that you could consider would be to neuter it. By doing so you will be able to lower its sex drive and you’ll be able to reduce its desire to hump things so much.
There are also a number of other benefits to neutering your Labrador such as allowing it to be more healthy and reducing its urge to roam so it would help to consider it anyway.
Get up and ignore it
Since your Labrador might be doing it in order to get extra attention from you, one option would also be to stop giving it attention when it starts doing it. By doing so, you should be able to teach it that humping you will not result in it getting attention from you.
Try the redirect method
Another option would be to train your Labrador to do something else such as to roll over and to tell it to do that as soon as it looks like it is about to start humping. Doing this could get it out of the habit of trying to hump you.
Give it lots of exercise
It would also help to give it daily exercise so that it is fully stimulated. Generally, it is recommended for adult Labradors to get at least an hour of exercise per day.
Give it distractions
Another option that you could try would be to take its mind away from humping. You can do this by giving it lots of toys and bones to play with.
However, the issue with this method is that you won’t be teaching your Labrador to stop the behavior instead you’ll be masking it which won’t make it go away very effectively.
Things to consider about your Labrador’s humping
Stop it young
If it is still a puppy it would help to stop the behavior now and to give it lots of training so that it is well behaved as an adult. If you wait until it is older then getting it to stop doing it will be a lot more difficult since the habit will be more ingrained.
Avoid punishing it
If you punish it when it misbehaves it might not understand why it is being punished. Instead, it would help to reward it when it is being well behaved and to use positive reinforcement training to get it to change its behavior.
It’s in its nature
A humping Labrador isn’t generally something that you should be overly concerned about. It’s something that all dogs are known to do and it’s a part of their nature to do it.