What does the Licking Behavior of Dogs Mean

Dogs are known to be great lickers. Dogs are seen licking themselves. If allowed, dogs would lick other animals too. A dog is commonly seen meeting the master with wet sloppy kisses on the arms, hands and face. Even if they love dogs, some people would detest the feel of the dog’s raspy tongue especially the slobber that gets on their faces. The pet’s tendency to lick is a concern of pet owners especially if the dog also has the habit of eating its own and other animal’s feces. To be able to curb the dog’s compulsive licking, the owner has to know the reasons why the pet is driven to lick.

Licking becomes a natural behavior as it was learned by puppies from their mother dog. Licking is done by the mother dog to clean and to promote the circulation of the newly born puppies. As soon as the puppy defecates and urinates, the mother dog would be seen licking the genitals of the puppies. Puppies will also lick the mouth of the dam to encourage her to regurgitate food.

Dogs are seen licking themselves clean. Dogs are not as fastidious as cats that are seen licking themselves for hours but man’s best friends also use their tongue as a washcloth to clean themselves. Dogs have this habit of licking their wounds. This gives rise to the notion that the saliva of dogs can heal wounds and other injuries.

Dogs are sweet by nature and their inclination to lick people can be a sign of affection. People that have kept dogs for pets would be aware of the intelligence of these animals. Bring a dog its favorite treat and you will be rewarded by wet sloppy licking and kisses. Licking is done by puppies as a sign of affection. It follows that the dog will show the human family affection by licking as well

Licking can be a form of communication. Dog are naturally sweet thus they would need attention from the owners. The formation of destructive habits is the common consequence of neglecting the pet. A dog can turn into a barker, be a destructive chewer or be a compulsive licker resulting to lesions in the body

Owners should not be too concerned if licked by the dog as they can always wash. This behavior though becomes a concern if the dog is already harmed. If your dog has a similar concern, think of the last time you played with the pet. Excessive licking can be the dog’s way of telling the owner that it needs attention.

You now know a bit about why dogs lick. But there is more to it. Come on over to Sarah’s Dogs where the topic is discussed further.