11
Sep
Its their way of integrating into the pack or of passing on a social favor in the form of a bit of friendly grooming. The second reason is that theyre grooming you.
The first and most common reason is that they like the taste.
What does it mean when a puppy licks your ears. While it is not uncommon for a dog to love to lick your ears some still are not sure what it is that they love and why they do it. One explanation is that it is a sign of affection. Nuzzling licking and even nibbling on the ears of another pack member in this case you can be a means to show that your pup is comfortable with you.
That being said the more that your dog licks your ears the more likely it is that you may get an ear infection. Dogs may lick away the ear wax which helps clean your ears out but remember that ear wax plays the important role of protecting the insides of your ears from bacteria and other dangerous particles. There are two primary reasons your dog licks your ears.
The first and most common reason is that they like the taste. Sounds gross but some dogs love the taste of earwax. The second reason is that theyre grooming you.
A show of affection is the most likely reason why your dog will lick your or someone elses ears. This behaviour has roots back when dogs lived in packs. Licking another dogs ears showed that the recipient dog had been accepted into the pack.
When dogs are puppies face licking and ear licking are completely natural. In fact licking is something that a puppy will often do to signal to its mother that it is feeding time. As the puppy grows up they simply carry this behavior along with them.
The most common reason a dog may lick their humans ears is as a sign of affection. Back when dogs lived in packs in the wild they would lick the ears of their packmates to show that they accepted the other as a part of their pack. Licking can be an appeasement gesture that signals a dogs social deference.
It can also be a signal to solicit food more social information a sign of affection or to solicit attention. A dog licking faces or other body parts can also occur as part of grooming. Your dog may lick his canine housemates face and your face or other body parts.
When it comes to licking your ears specifically though it could also mean that your ears smell and taste good. And while it may be a gross thought to consider some dogs might like the taste of human ear wax. 2 Your Dogs Behavior And Instincts.
But sometimes licking is a symptom of a more serious problem. If your dog is licking themselves you or objects excessively to the point that it seems like a self-stimulatory behavior this. Ear Licking is a Complex Canine Behavior Dogs are pack animals meaning that most of their day to day activities are some form of communication.
The ever changing social structure in a pack makes it necessary that dogs are good communicators. Two dogs who are close friends or family members often engage in mutual grooming. Other animals like cats also clean each other up by licking 1 so your dog may naturally want to do so.
However it does mean your dog is cleaning your ear because it is dirty. It is just a normal and safe cleaning procedure unless you are worried about bacteria and saliva getting into your ear canal. Truthfully some dogs lick ears because of their social instincts but there are other reasons why your pet may be obsessed with this habit.
Perhaps the most common reason and true to canine form the grossest is that some dogs may develop a penchant for ear wax. A dog licking the ear of another dog is a thing dogs do. It means a lot to them.
Its their way of integrating into the pack or of passing on a social favor in the form of a bit of friendly grooming. But just keep in mind although ear licking is instinctual it can evolve into something more and so you need to be keeping an eye on it. The main reason why pugs lick other dogs ears is the same reason why many other breeds do the same.
As a mark of affection. This may sound strange and downright unpleasant to humans but for dogs the desire to lick is hard-wired into their DNA. Licking can signify a medical condition.
If your dog is not only excessively licking you and other dogs but itself and inanimate objects this could be a sign of a painful medical condition. Mostly likely the culprit is dental or stomach pain. If so alert your vet immediately.
Dogs lick faces hands knees and even ears. But what does it mean when a dog licks your feet. Most dogs lick because they enjoy the taste of sweat or want to show how submissive they are.
Other dogs might simply try to groom you gather some information or scrape food off your soles.