Question about licking...

[diamondklp]

My Bassett, Ozzy, is about 10 months old. He has a tendancy when tired to lick the fabric that he is laying on, including my pants if he is on my lap (yes he does think he is a lap dog). I was just wondering if this is suckiling behavior, that maybe he wasn't weened properly. I often find large slober marks on my couch pillows! It isn't really a concern of mine but I was just wondering if it should be.

[k9Karen]

I doubt it's anything to worry about, but it may be a behavior you don't want to encourage. I think all dogs do this to some extent. Allie is probably my worst - she gets into "moods" where she wants to lick everything - poor Angel is usually the brunt of it - she ends up with a very soggy face if I don't see what's going on and stop it. I've even caught her licking the carpet, the floor, pillows - even Mickey (who usually won't stand for this type of thing, but he seems to enjoy it). I've even awakened in the middle of the night to find Allie or Angel licking my arm. I think this behavior is more out of boredom than anything else. Mickey did the most damage - he would start licking something and then, as soon as it got really soggy, he'd start to chew on it. He destroyed 2 bedspreads that way. I get after them everytime I catch them, but I think it's behavior that's somewhat instinctive, and they don't even realize they're doing it.

Oh, and BTW, if Ozzy is licking your clothing - did you consider that you might have spilled some of your lunch on them?

[Donetta]

You might want to check the dog's ears for ear mites or fungus. I have a dog that will lick almost anything ( and nothing, just makes a licking noise with her mouth) when she has trouble with her ears.