natcho/ ebonies mate .. unusual problem

[bernie47]

hi all ... my other dog natcho has an unusual problem..ever since we had her sterilized .. she is constantly "humping " a basket ball .. if we take it off her the situation is unbearable... she sits on her bed and licks her self as if there is no tomorrow.. [ only for short time ] i have checked her girlie pieces and all seems normal ..my vet that use to treat her said not to worry!... our new vet however was surprised ... and said it may just be ocd..
tried distracting her.. over a few weeks but still doing it ! natcho is 12 yrs old now.. please has any one had this problem ? I am at my wits end with her ..any advice would be appreciated ... cath..:o

[Harley PoMMom]

Bear with me...by sterilized, do you mean spayed? If so, then maybe she is going thru some hormonal changes? If she is licking herself, maybe check for a UTI? What does her pee look/smell like? Is she peeing normally?

[SasAndYunah]

Hi Cath,

spaying can sometimes result in an increase of testosterone. Especially if she was already producing androgenic (testosterone-like) hormones at higher levels then most females. This, combined with the estrogen removed due to the spaying, can result in humping (more aggressive/dominant behaviour). Before spaying, the estrogen would "supress" that behaviour. It is possible to test for the hormonal levels in order to confirm or rule out if this is causing the behaviour.

Apart from hormonal changes , it could be plain dominant behaviour which I assume isn't the case here, or it could be anxiety or ocd. These are the most common reasons for (sudden) humping behaviour in females.

Hope this has helped some,

Saskia and Yunah :)

[bernie47]

sorry ..yes i meant spayed .. !
natcho has never had a litter ...and her pee is normal .. she also doesn't like getting her feet dirty..goes for walk in park and soon as we are home.. cleaning them all .. :confused: will talk to vet again ..thanks for all information.keep up the good work.. cath.

[bernie47]

hi all ...we have had a break through with natchos unusual problem... was put to us from Dr harry ...to try this..
each time we caught her licking her self obsessively..to spray her with fine mist of water ...and look the other way
so we tried it ... and now very rarely catch her doing this inside any more..guess it was o c d... ;).....:D :D :D cheers ! Cath..