Humping in the dog park - etiquette query.

[dylexicdementor11]

My lovely little 5 month old intact male puppy started humping a female dog today in the dog park.
The owners were horrified. I apologized profusely and put my puppy back on a lead and kept him by my side until they left.
I realize that my puppy could be sexually mature and could impregnate a female dog but the owners acted as if their dog had been violated.

We have not decided when or if we will neuter our puppy when he’s older but in the meantime I wouldn’t want to upset dog owners with my randy puppy.

Any tips on how to play nice in the dog park? Should I keep a male dog on a lead at all times unless he’s neutered? TIA

You can make a bitch very defensive and aggressive to your dog - if they do not want to be humped - it's not nice and can cause a lot of issues for other dogs

If yours is randy then a long lead -

Yes she was. But it's not great to neuter a tiny puppy. Do people neuter bitches before they have a first season now?

But even after she was neutered she had a few far bigger breeds trying it on. On leads. It's still not nice.

A bit like when a black lab jumped up on me when I was eight months pregnant. Its OK with the badly behaved dog owner but I'm not obliged to like it.

I kept my previous male dog entire for his whole life. He was allowed off lead. He was well socialised and behaved. What you need is as close to bomb proof recall as is possible. It’s not just about humping; he needs to know he can’t just run up to any dog he likes (if they are under control /on a lead/ walking to heel - it’s different if both are loose and playing together) as not all will respond positively and he could get hurt/in trouble. I now have a bitch and she spayed but until she was done, we kept her on a short lead and walked at quiet times during her season.
Your boy is young and learning, but I’d be working on his recall as a priority. It’s probably the most important training to nail and will enable you to enjoy him more and keep him safe.

That sounds exactly like my situation, Dearg. When my PRT was around the usual neutering age, I spoke with my vet about whether to neuter him and mentioned his general wariness around other dogs (not aggressive, just very tentative and a little slow to 'warm up' into friendly playfulness).
The vet said to hold back on neutering, since it might contribute to a loss of confidence. Now, at nearly three, my dog is a little too interested in tracking down the scents of other dogs and chatting them up a bit too intensively, and I have to keep on reviewing the decision not to neuter him.
On balance I think that, for him, the right solution is to keep on and on working on his training. He has never been a significant problem for other dogs, I'm just worried about him going AWOL, and that is as likely to happen as a result of chasing rabbits rather than skirt. Recall, recall, recall. It is all about the recall.

What would you have done?