Hey there Pups! Today I wanted to cover a pretty important topic for my pup play brothers: Safety. I was recently chatting with a master who was telling me he preferred to play with his pup when the pup was under the influence of substances. He said it made the pup easier to handle. This has me quite worried as human pup play can be rather intense and adding substances to the mix can make it down right dangerous.
Human Pup Play Safety
Human pup play can be both physically and emotionally demanding. There is a lot of trust involved in addition to physical activity and postures we are rarely due when in full human mode. My biggest concerns are that if a pup is under the influence he may miss important signals from his body of potential injury or fatigue. Even more worrying is that because most pups like to wear a mask, trainers may miss important signals of distress as they won’t be able to see the pup’s face.
Another mask related concern is that if a puppy was to suddenly become sick and vomit there is a risk of not being able to get the mask off quickly leading to choking or aspiration. These events do happen and when it does every second counts.
From a psychological perspective human pup play can be very demanding. While we understand that we can never completely lose contact with our human side, drugs could make this line blurry, confusing or even distressing. A distressed dog can be very agressive and unpredictable, imagine what a distressed, intoxicated human dog could be like!
As part of human pup play, in fact all s&m really there is a large amount of trust placed into the trainer or master to care for the pup. If a trainer is intoxicated there is a high risk of missing important signals, distress and both physical and psychological harm. I strongly suggest that pups never play with a master if they are intoxicated or under the influence of substances.
For the above mentioned reasons my pack, Sirius Pup, has a strict no drug policy. We take our safety seriously and want to help encourage the care and love of every person that enjoys human pup play. We love our puppy play and hope to be doing it for many years to come. Doesn’t everyone?
Hugs and tugs guys!
Gpup
Thank you for this important information you share about safety concerns in pup play.
One major concern with any play that involves restraint of any kind is the risk of dehydration. A highly aroused person who is enjoying the play may not remember to drink enough water and continue to play uninterrupted long after their body begins giving them warnings that their need for hydration is getting extreme. This is magnified by heat-retaining gear (masks, neoprene, cellophane) which can cause overheating and lead to rapid dehydration.
Also, I would like to say I agree strongly with the author that play while under the influence is not a good idea. Judgement is impaired, and for both pup and trainer to get the most out of the experience, they should want to be fully engaged in the moment. Substance experimentation can’t be entirely condemned for all, but my opinion is that it works best compartmentalized into dedicated times for “getting high” separated from “play time”.
Be safe, Leather and Pup brothers.
Thanks for that great additional tip Jay. Indeed after wearing my mask for even as short a time as half an hour I’ve got heaps of sweat dripping down under my hood. Fun to enjoy but guys remember to top up with plenty of water!