Why Do Dogs Lick Your Nose?

Dogs are considered man's best friend. Most of them are friendly and fun-loving animals and very popular household pets. Dogs have many great characteristics and some habits that may seem strange to their human caretakers, such as scooting their rears on the floor and licking people's noses and faces.

  1. Misconceptions

    • The biggest misconception about dogs licking someone's nose or face is that it's unsanitary. However, saliva from dogs has antibiotics in it, which helps them to stay clean and protects them from various harmful bacterias. Some people see dogs licking a person's nose or face as being something sexual, but this is a misconception. Comparing a dog licking someone's nose or face to something sexual is like comparing an infant nursing from their mother to something sexual. There is nothing wrong with infants nursing, just as there is nothing wrong with dogs licking people's noses or faces.

    Affection

    • One reason dogs lick someone's nose or face is very simple. They are simply showing affection for their owners, or people they enjoy being with. It is their way of showing everyone else that a person is their owner or their friend. It is a natural way for them to show their appreciation for their owners.

    Greeting

    • Dogs lick each other's faces and noses to greet them. They do this for humans, as well. Especially after a long time away from each other, a dog is very happy to see the familiar face of his owner, so licking is how they communicate that they are happy to see them and how they say hello.

    Respect

    • When a dog licks the face of another dog, he is showing respect to the other dog. That is the same when dogs lick human noses or faces. They are showing respect to their owners or other caregivers, and telling them that they appreciate and respect their care.

    Food

    • Puppies in the wild, such as wolves, start licking faces from the time they are born. They lick their parent's faces, in turn triggering a regurgitation reflex and receiving food in that way from their parents. So, it seems to only make sense that dogs will lick people's nose or faces to ask for food as well, just not in the regurgitated form.

    Prevention/Solution

    • In the end, whether a person lets their dog lick their nose or face is up to him. It is important to discourage dogs from licking the faces of infants and toddlers, so as not to expose young children to germs that they are not used to being around, and they don't have strong enough defenses to protect themselves from these germs. If a person has health concerns about a dog licking their nose or face, then training the dog to not do this while they are very young is vital.