Question:

my dogs loves to lick me all the time.Is this good or bad?

mr bill

ANSWER:

Picture a wolf returning to her pups – what do they do? They lick her lips and chin to encourage her to regurgitate food for them to eat but also to show their submissive position. This is okay licking.

When puppies are little, we tend to encourage this licking behavior because it is cute. The problem is that some dogs continue it as they age because we have now shown them we approve of this behavior. This type of licking is not a bad behavior but can become annoying. To try to change the behavior in an adult dog is difficult and everyone in the family has to be on the same page about it. Some dogs never get over the behavior entirely and visitors will often get a tongue bath whether they wanted one or not! For this reason, it is easier to discourage the behavior in puppies or teach them that a few licks are all that is necessary.

The licking that is not okay is more a nervous compulsive behavior that some dogs develop. My poor little brain damaged pit bull would lick when she was nervous and although it did seem to calm her down, she was never particular about where or what she would lick so I was always pulling dirt, fur, wood and sand out of her mouth. She also would lick her German Shepherd sister obsessively and after a few minutes would get a loud reprimand. This type of lick behavior should be discouraged although again, it is a difficult one to stop entirely. It is easier to tackle the cause of the licking – the nerves – or to try to replace the behavior with something else more socially acceptable then it is to stop nervous licking.

If your dogs are just giving you a lick or two when you come home from work, they are just demonstrating to you how happy you are home and that they know their place in the pack – it is a good thing! Anymore then a few licks is unnecessary and you may want to discourage the behavior.

If you let me know more about your dog’s particular licking behavior I can help give you more suggestions and ideas on how to stop or switch the behavior.

Good luck Mr. Bill and let me know if I can be of any further help!