Why Does Your Dog Lick?

Have you ever wondered why your dog likes to lick you, food, and other dogs? This inherited and loving trait can be explained in more detail below.

Inheritance

Licking is a natural instinct in canines. Dogs have similar habits as wolves as the lower-ranking wolves lick superior members to get themselves out of trouble. Another reason why dogs lick is because it’s one of their earliest memories of their mother. A mother will lick her puppy to stimulate breathing and to get them clean. In return, puppies would lick their mother’s mouth to ask for food and care. Dog’s see their owners as the leaders in their pack (top dogs) or parents to them, so dogs lick their owners to show their trust, respect and obedience.

Chemicals

Dogs lick and sniff to learn information about the outside world and explore new places. Sometimes the dogs like to lick their owners` hands or feet to build communications and identify different people. In this case, they are just trying to understand the human`s mood and what they have been up to all day.

Affection

For most of the time, dogs lick their owners as a sign of affection. Dogs are known to be naturally affectionate animals and licking is one of their ways to show love. They would also want to lick their owner's face to cheer them up. The habit would be especially encouraged when they assume that the person enjoys the experience.

Attention

In many cases, licking is a learned behaviour. The dogs find out that every time they lick their owners, they get more attention, so they incorporate licking into more of their daily behaviours to signify their presence and ask their owners to pet them. Also, they may be trying to seek something from the owners like food, water or a walk outside.

Dog’s “kisses” are meant to express their love and interest in their owners. Does your dog like to give you licks or is it something they do occasionally?

If you are interested in keeping your dog healthy and happy check out our dog activity trackers by clicking here!