: How to/Should I stop my 3-month old puppy from humping? My 13 weeks old puppy humps his bedding when I'm not around. I'm not sure how I should stop this behaviour or if I should even try to..? Is this normal?

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This is a natural behaviour and is not a sign of dominance. The dominance theory has been disproved for many years now. Dogs, both male and female do this behaviour when playing and is only seen as wrong by humans as we sexualise it. It would be like pulling your friend's arm. Can I ask why you would like to stop it? What would you like your dog to be doing instead? I agree with Aravona about desexing as this may decrease the humping behaviour but there are no guaranties.

Since you have said that he is doing it while you are not around, giving him a "no" command when you are around will just tell him that I can't do this normal behaviour when the human is around so I'll just do it when they are not around.

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Yes it's perfectly normal for a young dog to hump things. Dogs hump for a number of reasons, both male and female, usually it's due to excitement - especially in such a young pup. But it can be sexual under a year, or in older dogs a sign of dominance.

You can stop the behaviour, it is possible he may or may not grow out of it, but it's not bad to stop the behaviour if you wish to no. It'll certainly be more pleasant / less embarrassing to have a pup that doesn't hump.

Usually if you want to prevent a behaviour like this just interupt, like you would do when they're peeing unwantedly. Startling a dog generally makes them pause their actions. Give a 'No' command, but not agressively, just to grab their attention. Get them to focus on you, with a Watch command, then reward it.

At 13 weeks some males already have descending/descended testicles, so it's worth having a check to see if that's happening/happened yet. You can consult a vet in regards to when your breed usually drops, and when it's best to neuter. Having your dog neutered will drop the testosterone levels and your dog will more than likely lose interest in this.