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Permalink Reply by Kim on May 26, 2008 at 1:28am

When I take Mia to the dog park some dogs do try and mate with her. She is usually not interested and snaps at them herself. If the dog is too large and scares Mia I have taught her to come sit by my side, that usually deters the male dogs. I never flip out at someone else's dog, as it is only natural for male dogs to find mates. I pull or push the dog off and tell it no. The owner sees me by then and comes along to help.

When dogs are playing too rough it means that the owners are not properly supervising. Most parks post certain rules. Owners and their dogs should be within voice command and should be no more than a certain length away so that rough play does not happen. Every now and again it is unevitable, but just like kids, you pull them apart, take them to seperate corners and give'm a good talking to. If you go to a certain dog park often enough you begin to recognize which dogs can easily get out of hand. I know which dogs Mia does and does not get along with, and if they come I leave totally eliminating a bad situation.

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Permalink Reply by E on May 26, 2008 at 7:39am

It's usually not a sex thing - the humping is a way a dog asserts its dominance over another dog. Dogs try to hump Bailey as well but she's pretty good at the "tuck and roll" and gets out of it. I normally don't have to do anything about it. The owners are usually close by and will step in when their dog is getting aggressive (time-out for doggies). I'll step in when Bailey starts showing signs that she's not having fun (real growls as opposed to play growls, starting to run away instead of playing, etc).

Though I haven't had to do this yet, if there is a dog that is off-leash, is overly aggressive and the owner does nothing about it, I'd have a word with them. People should not let their dogs go off leash if the dog can't socialize well with other dogs. The dog should be kept on-leash until then.

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Permalink Reply by DR, Nala & Simon on May 26, 2008 at 9:51am

I think Kara will do fine by herself. I am pretty sure she will show some corgi "attitude" to any dog that she doesn't find funny. When Bailey goes to the park, she usually is the one that invites other dogs to run and play. Never had a problem.

If they start playing too rough, just call her, or try to divert her attention with a ball or a toy. It will be fine, you soon will find yourself planning for the next trip.

Another thing, you will definitely will meet other owners, don't hesitate to ask. Have fun.

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Permalink Reply by Sam Tsang on May 26, 2008 at 10:59am

When there is no blood and no actual menstrual cycle, the males cannot lick the blood to determine if the female is ready or not. So no worries there.

Dogs do the butt sniff the same way we shake hands to say hello, there is nothing sexual about it, also humping is just a way to show "who's the boss" or "who's in charge" some dogs react it by drop"on their back" as a way to show total submission.

The absolute red flag is when the dogs show teeth, growl with ears pull back, that's a real fight and you will need to step in. The proper way is not say anything, no yelling, because, lets face it, he's not going to listen to you now, so lets not make it dramatic for everyone and the dogs, just step in, be calm, no words and remove your dog from the situation.

It is not a silly question at all, a lot of owners cannot spot a real fight and make a big fuss in the first sign of humping. most of them don't let their dogs figure it out and contribute to their bullying behavior, since the dogs knew their owner will make a huge deal and step in and pick them up. Pretty similar to obnoxious parents at a kid baseball game :)

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Permalink Reply by CaptainCorgi on May 26, 2008 at 12:17pm

Well first off, I don't see how people let their dogs mount other dogs. I've had male dogs and females before and they've never mounted any dog in dominance. I always come across that problem at dog parks. But here, the owners do nothing about it. They think it's cute and call it 'puppy love'. I usually don't do anything about it until my dogs have had enough or come running back to me. Then I usually just block the dog's attempt and send it away. No yelling or anything like that. Silent and assertive is much better. It was also helpful when we had our previous foster Corgi. He helped with stopping the dogs mounting. He 'chested' the dog who was trying to mount him and sent him away.

Don't feel feel silly asking this, it's actually a very good question! I would just prevent before it happens. If you see a dog about to mount her or playing too rough, go in and step between the two and remove your dog from the situation and block the other dog. Or ask the owner to remove their dog. I hope everything goes well!

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Permalink Reply by Arang&Mark on May 27, 2008 at 7:25pm

This is a very thoughtful question! and its great that you ask before you actually take kara to the dog park.

male dogs will try to mount her and some female dogs may even try to mount her as a dominance response. if this happens, i would take her out of the situation. not everyone who owns a dog is a responsible dog owner. I think it is best, for the protection of little kara to just pick her up and leave if you have to. dogs sometimes play too rough, especially some that havent been socialized properly or have irresponsible owners who arent watching. most owners at dog parks are usually very understanding and will understand if you just take her out of the situation as long as you do so quickly and calmly.

its sometimes pretty funny actually when some of the big male dogs try to mount Scout as dominance. he is so low to the ground that he kind of just walks right under them or doesnt realize what is going on.

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