Have you ever had a dog that licks a lot, himself another dog or you, I have a couple in my house like that. My larger dog, she is a husky mix licks her front legs all the time, my little smaller dog likes whatever he can, if he is near me he will lick and lick, especially if you just applied some kind of lotion.
Drives me crazy, I will tell him to stop and he shows his teeth to me, not nice but I have to laugh because he is so cute. So a while ago I read an article “7 Reasons Why Dogs Lick Humans: Understand the Cause” by CureJoy Editorial and decided to share this with all of our readers.
The most loving mark of any animal-lovers home is being greeted by their dog, the minute they walk in the door. Nothing beats receiving that warm and loving welcome from your dog. With their excited sniffing, to the classic tail-wagging to jumping on you to licking you, they don’t stop or hold back from showing you how much they have missed you and are so happy you are home.
Have you ever wondered why dogs lick humans? Well, one guess is because that is their way of showing love because they can’t talk. So here are 7 possible reasons and meanings behind your loving little doggy’s licking.
1. Showing Affection: This is the most obvious reason, licking is a dog’s way of displaying their love for us. Dogs are known to be naturally affectionate animals and have many ways of showing us their love. When they lick us, their brains release endorphins, which calm them down and reassure them. Love and affection being a primary motivation behind licking this is why it’s been listed as reason number 1.
2. Communication: This is often associated with being verbal, involving sound or some obvious forms of body language like when dogs wag their tails, this leads us to think that a dog bark means that they are trying to tell us something or warn us of something. This may mean they want something from us, like food, water, or going for a walk. The dog could be trying to cheer you up if you’re sad or sick. Or for all you know, you have food on your face and they are trying to lick it off. Whatever it is, we must learn to interpret what our furry friends behavior means
3. Seeking Attention: Dogs are made to be loved and to love too, they always crave for attention. Dogs bark, wag their tails, rub up against us, jump on us and even land their sloppy wet kisses by licking us. This is done more when you are paying attention to something else more than them. So when they are being neglected or less loved they know that licking is one of the things they have to do.
4. Submissive Gesture: With all animals that live in packs or are socially-driven, licking can also be considered a submissive gesture towards the dominant members of the packs. When dogs lick us it is their way of letting us know that we’re the boss.
5. Explorative Technique: Dogs are natural hunters, which goes back to their ancestral canine genes. When surviving in the wild they used the superior sense of their noses and tongues to explore places, identify people, discover or know different objects whether they were animate or inanimate.
6. Tasting Us: Dogs identify us and others by our distinctive odor, they can also clearly recognize and recall who we are based on the salts released from the pores of our skin, when we sweat. Once they lick and register those taste markers for different people in their minds, they can accurately identify who we are.
7. Force of Habit: If the habit of licking a person is encouraged, the dog assumes that the person enjoys the experience. Therefore, this operative conditioning makes the dog repeat the act of licking over and over again, until being told otherwise. On the other hand if a person discourages the dog from licking, then the dog begins to understand that they do not like it and stops that licking behavior soon after.
Dogs are interesting animals, and if you are looking for a dog or a cat, check out The Central Aroostook Humane Society. You may find your next best friend there. We are located in Presque Isle at 26 Cross Street. We are open Tuesday through Sat. 10am to 4pm closed at lunch 12pm to 12:30pm. Please remember to be responsible, spay and neuter your pets!
