The best way to prevent a dog from even beginning to hump is to have it neutered as early as possible before it reaches puberty then the problem will probably never start. However, once the dog reaches puberty and starts the humping behavior it is going to be hard to dissuade him from the practice. If the dog has passed puberty then having him neutered will not guarantee the cessation of the habit. In fact it may take many months for it to dissipate but even then in all likelihood it will not disappear altogether.

If the situation continues after neutering it may be possible to stop the dog from humping by developing a system of distracting his attention once you recognize the signs that the activity is about to start. Get his attention by playing with him with his favorite toy or give him a favorite chewy or treat. Most dogs can be diverted from the activity by the magic words like "walk", "ball" or "leash" something that he relates to as an activity that he enjoys. Although this may be inconvenient when guests are visiting.

If this does not stop the dog from humping then he needs to be trained with firmness. The dog owner needs to take control with a firm "no" or "stop", words that the dog will become to understand as definite commands, then once he has stopped to make him sit or to lie down.

In some cases the humping behavior can become quite extreme as it is a way of the dog showing his dominance. If this is the case then the way to stop the dog from humping may be to put him in a time out situation in a cage or crate and over time once the dog realizes that his humping behavior is not rewarded but instead results in a removal from the scene then the humping behavior will stop. Be prepared for this to take some time.

It is always best to train your dog to understand basic commands so that he will do the normal, sit, stay and lie down type of orders immediately. His basic adolescent training should include these types of orders as well as no, stop, down etc. A well trained dog will normally be able to be controlled even if he does have bad habit's the commands should stop this and it should be fairly simple to stop your dog from humping in this manner. If he has been neutered and then well trained this problem should then not be an embarrassment when guests are visiting.

There are many publications available to assist you to not only stop your dog from humping but to prevent many other situations also. The earlier a training method is adopted and implemented the sooner you will be proud of your dog and his behavioral achievements.