29
Aug
What Does It Mean When A Dog Licks His Lips A Lot. It is important that if your dog is licking their lips more than normal that this problem is not ignored as many of the causes of lip-licking can seriously impact a dogs happiness and comfort levels. In dogs licking the lips can be what Roger Abrantes calls a pacifying behavior Dogs basically engage in this behavior to diffuse a perceived threat using the lip smacking action as an appeasing signal. 8 If for example someone is yelling at your pet they might first lick their lips in order to get the yelling to stop. An example of when a dog may lick their lips is when approached by another dog.
It can be seen in dogs who are stressed anxious or nervous about an interaction or when there is some type of conflict going on. Gingivitis can also be the culprit behind a dog yawning and lip licking as the gums may be very sore and irritated. But sometimes licking is a symptom of a more serious problem. In dogs licking the lips can be what Roger Abrantes calls a pacifying behavior Dogs basically engage in this behavior to diffuse a perceived threat using the lip smacking action as an appeasing signal. So its not quite a stress signal as a calming signal when a dog is doing one of those signals in a place where they should be calm like yawning when in bed or licking its lips around family then it just means they are calm and hence doing the signal. 8 If for example someone is yelling at your pet they might first lick their lips in order to get the yelling to stop.
Most of the time a dog licking their lips is a sign of submission.
The yawning and lip licking may be caused by a loose tooth fractured tooth or abscess. It can be seen in dogs who are stressed anxious or nervous about an interaction or when there is some type of conflict going on. Dogs may lick their lips when they feel dry a bug hits their lip or face or something is stuck near their lip such as a piece of food or a blade of grass. What and when a dog licks can tell you why they lick or what theyre feeling when they lick. The same is sort of true for a dog. According to one theory dogs that live in packs lick each other as a sign of friendship but also to show submissiveness.