Dog excessive licking

[KalamazooMom]

We got our "new" dog just about a month ago. He's almost 2, part golden, part greyhound. Rex is a sweet boy and we love him! Story is that he was owned by a single man who got transferred and surrendered the dog to the animal rescue. In the last couple weeks he's started licking a lot! He licks the couch, licks the bed, and licks himself. He doesn't lick me or the kids however. But I did notice yesterday that he's got 2 spots, one on each paw in exactly the same place where it's looking pretty raw from the licking.

I've been reading online about this and my guess is that it is anxiety. I was thinking he went from a home where it was likely pretty quiet, into the rescue for a month or so, and now into our home with 2 active little kids.

Any advice on what to do about this? Do you think he'll get over it once he feels a little more settled. Probably couldn't hurt to increase his exercise, huh? He gets at least one walk a day and a 20-30 minute session of fetch and playing outside. He does love to run.

[lonegirl]

Sounds like OCD...perhaps caused by anxiety. The concern with licking himself is a lick granuloma. http://www.vetinfo.com/dencyclopedia/deacrlick.html

[SophieAnn]

To help prevent sores from the licking, you can use a bit of tea tree oil diluted in water. We've used it on our dogs paws before when they have had bouts of chewing/sucking their paws. The skin can get very raw from this.

The tea tree oil has 2 effects: it's a deterrant so they stop licking that area, and it's also an antiseptic.

This doesn't solve the problem obviously... but at least it may help prevent sores/infection.

Have you taken him to obedience classes (bring the kids too)? That may be a great way to help him bond with his new family - even if he already is very well mannered.

[KalamazooMom]

Originally Posted by SophieAnn

Have you taken him to obedience classes (bring the kids too)? That may be a great way to help him bond with his new family - even if he already is very well mannered.

Thanks, I'll look into the tea tree oil.


And yes, I finally found a class that would let the kids participate. We've only had one class so far, but hopefully that will help all of us as well.

[Oubliette8]

I would try distracting him when he licks- do food filled toys interest him at all? Chews? My first choice would be something like a kong with peanut butter in it- you can freeze it in there to make it last longer. That will give him something acceptable to lick and hopefully save his paws. It should also keep him mentally stimulated. They make a variety of treat dispensing toys you could rotate between. You might also ask the vet about it- in some dogs obsessive licking of themselves is a sign of allergies. Although since his obsessive licking is not limited to himself, I think its less likely to be the case. More exercise would probably be helpful too. You might also ask your trainer about the behavior. At this point I'd chalk it up to anxiety from being in his new home, but in some dogs licking can become an obsessive behavior. If your trainer has experience in behavior issues she may have ideas for interventions you can work on now while the behavior is new, rather than waiting to see if it will pass or not (always better to address things quickly- once its apparent that its not going away, its already harder to get rid of)

[KalamazooMom]

I tried the tea tree oil. Not sure if it's helping or not. He still seems to be licking even right after I apply the oil. I mixed the oil 3 to 1 with water and dabbed it on with a cotton ball. We've been trying to distract him. We have 2 kongs, plus an atomic treat ball, and an everlasting treatball, and some rawhides. So we switched those out to keep his mouth occupied. This morning we went for a long walk and a romp in the snow. He's mostly tired out and sleeping.