# Do females from other species, orgasm ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 24, 2003, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663 "2003-01-24T18:27:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![andy\_fl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@andy\_fl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andy_fl)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/1 "2003-01-24T18:27:14Z")
In a [recent thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=158461) it was pointed out that only the human female has the genital tract and the urinary tract separated. (I wonder if that is true for apes also). Now, my question is that I have heard that only human females are capable of orgasming (my apologies to those who still cant) and females from other species cannot ! Is that true ? ---
**Author:** ![X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/bbe5ce/32.png) [@X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/X_Slayer_ALE)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/2 "2003-01-24T18:31:59Z")
Have you seen salmon spawn? The female scoops up a hallow at the place where she will deposit her eggs, a male siddles up together and they release their stuff together. Their mouths open, they quiver and their eyes bulge out. fertilization occurs when the sperm contacts the egg while in the water. If that wasnt an orgasm, it mustve been damn funny to whichever deity made them do that. ---
**Author:** ![andy\_fl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@andy\_fl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andy_fl)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/3 "2003-01-24T18:42:39Z")
My question was more from the biological point of view rather than the physical point of view. I wanted to know if females of other species went through the same biology of orgasm i.e. if they had nerve endings in their vagina (or cloacal opening ) to give them the feeling of pleasure or if the same hormones were released in their brains when and if they orgasmed. ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/4 "2003-01-24T19:29:46Z")
[A relevant column from the Master](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_064b.html) that starts out talking about pigs (nope, they don’t), and ends up talking about macaques (apparently they do). ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/5 "2003-01-24T19:43:33Z")
So, you mean to tell me that pig was faking it? I’m crushed. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/6 "2003-01-24T19:45:29Z")
My childhood dog sure seemed to - she took care of herself frequently, and I can’t imagine another reason. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/7 "2003-01-24T19:54:45Z")
I don’t know about orgasm, but something must feel good or why else would they _stand still_ for such a thing? - [sup]Pun in italics[/sup] ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/8 "2003-01-24T20:02:46Z")
Bonobos – a close relative of chimpanzees – are notorious little freelovers; one (human) couple I read about had a bonobo living in their house, but they eventually had to send her to a sanctuary because of her incessant masturbating over copies of _Cosmopolitan_. No joke. And Dan Savage, of Savage Love, wrote a column awhile ago about zookeepers who had to service female greatcats with specially-designed poles when they were in heat. Sadly, I don’t think he’s got a searchable column archive; maybe someone with one of his books can provide the details. I don’t recall if the cats were actually orgasming, though. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/9 "2003-01-24T20:12:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DanielWithrow \* > \*\*And Dan Savage, of Savage Love, wrote a column awhile ago about zookeepers who had to service female greatcats with specially-designed poles when they were in heat. \*\* Domestic cats are opportunistic ovulators; if they don’t get any, they just stay in heat. I guess it’s not a stretch for this to apply to the big cats as well. [http://www.cfainc.org/health/reproduction1.html](http://www.cfainc.org/health/reproduction1.html) ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/10 "2003-01-24T20:29:16Z")
_Domestic cats are opportunistic ovulators; if they don’t get any, they just stay in heat._ Yep. I used to know someone who kept pedigree queens that hadn’t been spayed because she wanted to breed from them later, and she used a soft-bristle paintbrush to simulate mating so they’d go off heat. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/11 "2003-01-24T21:46:46Z")
Female chimpanzees have been seen to use leafy branches to pleasure themselves. Female chimps also have been seen to perform oral sex on one another. Mediacl experiments have shown that the same physiolocial signs of orgasm in the human female are present in female chimps when they are stimulated. Imagine having THAT job. ---
**Author:** ![andy\_fl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@andy\_fl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/andy_fl)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/12 "2003-01-24T23:30:12Z")
Thanks all posters. From the evidence presented above it seems that the female orgasm is limited only to the primates (at least all the above sites were about primates), while male orgasm is fairly common. Any comments as to what might be the reason ? Is female orgasm a recent occurance on the evolutionary ladder ? ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/13 "2003-01-24T23:42:13Z")
> [@](#): > > Is female orgasm a recent occurance on the evolutionary ladder ? This would be difficult to ascertain, given that no creature has been fossilized in the throes of an orgasm to give us a date at which this behavior developed. The reason for orgasm may be to encourage females to mate. Whereas creatures might not realize that sex=pregnancy, if they have an urge for something that gives them pleasure, the odds are they’ll mate more often and have a better chance of breeding. Orgasm may also have the added benefit of helping the sperm along. The vaginal and uterine contractions may pull the sperm upward toward the egg. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/14 "2003-01-24T23:48:49Z")
I would imagine it is, since unlike male orgasm, female orgasm isn’t necessary to the continuation of the species. So, why did it evolve in primates? Most theories say it has something to do with pair bonding. Who the hell knows? ---
**Author:** ![X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/bbe5ce/32.png) [@X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/X_Slayer_ALE)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2003, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/15 "2003-01-24T23:58:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > **This would be difficult to ascertain, given that no creature has been fossilized in the throes of an orgasm to give us a date at which this behavior developed.** LOL! thats funny! I can just picture the first hypothesis by archeologists when they see that… “it seems to be some form of ancient death torture but we cant explain that enigmatic grin for ear to ear the one on the bottom has…” > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lissa \* > \*\*The reason for orgasm may be to encourage females to mate. Whereas creatures might not realize that sex=pregnancy, if they have an urge for something that gives them pleasure, the odds are they’ll mate more often and have a better chance of breeding. > > Orgasm may also have the added benefit of helping the sperm along. The vaginal and uterine contractions may pull the sperm upward toward the egg. \*\* well, if that were true, then human beings wouldve died out a long time ago. Human Female orgasm doesnt always happen during sex and is not a prerequisite to fertility or fertilization. The slam-bam-thank-you-maam technique has served humans very well for its continued existence. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2003, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/16 "2003-01-25T00:23:53Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by X~Slayer(ALE) \* > \*\* well, if that were true, then human beings wouldve died out a long time ago. Human Female orgasm doesnt always happen during sex and is not a prerequisite to fertility or fertilization. The slam-bam-thank-you-maam technique has served humans very well for its continued existence. \*\* I didn’t mean to say that it was necessary for fertilization, just that an orgasm’s contractions might be a little helpful in propelling sperm. The promise of pleasure may entice the female to mate, increasing the chances for success in breeding. Interestingly enough, at one time it WAS thought necessary for a woman to orgasm in order to procreate. The theory was that “female sperm” needed to mix with the males. Of course, advancing medical science killed that idea, to the regret of countless legions of unsatified women. ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2003, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-females-from-other-species-orgasm/150663/17 "2003-01-25T00:44:24Z")
It sure looks like Sugar Pie is having a good time whenever she humps one of Anna Nicole’s bears…