The famous dog whisperer, Cesar Millan, once said that the licking behaviors of dogs came from the deep-rooted personality traits that were bred through canines as a way of communicating, creating a bond, grooming, or psychological problems. For mother dogs to create biological bonds, they express their affection to their puppies in different ways and licking is one of them. Mother dogs lick their puppies from the time of birth. They use licking as a way of “waking up” their puppies from the post-partum phase, they also use licking to groom their own puppies and as well to teach bathroom functions. Through regurgitation licked done by their puppies, mother dogs are able to provide solid foods to the young until the day that they can digest the food on their own.
Licking and kissing can also be considered as a bonding tool when 2 dogs are face to face with each other, whether it’s the first time or 1000th time. Dogs usually start with the “feeling out” phase and respond with a tensed posture, which means that they are wary of one another or are mistrusting, or a bark that seems enthusiastic together with a lick on other areas of the other animal or their face. Dogs also use these displays of feeling to show that they submit to the master of the pack master or as a way of signal that they are thirsty, hunger, and others. Domesticated dogs consider their owner as the master of the pack that is why the deep-rooted behaviors are expressed in the same way.
However, for those dogs who lick excessively towards an object or humans, it can be an indication that the dog is experiencing a deeper problem mentally. It can be because of the fear of being all alone (separation anxiety) or being in a nervous state because of their surroundings like the smells, crowds, noise, and others.
A sudden change in your pet’s behavior should warrant a visit to your veterinarian Brampton ON.
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