Why Dogs Lick Wounds and Scabs
Dogs lick wounds and scabs as a natural instinct to clean the affected area and promote healing. The enzymes in their saliva have natural antiseptic properties, and licking stimulates the release of endorphins, which can reduce pain and provide a calming effect. However, excessive licking can also cause further damage and delay healing.
Instinct
Most mammals instinctively lick their wounds, including humans. Have you ever gotten a paper cut on your finger and stuck it in your mouth? You likely don’t even think about it; this is instinct.
Dogs have this same instinct. When something hurts them, they lick it. When something hurts you, they lick it too.
Cleaning
Dog’s tongues are made for grooming. They lick wounds to remove dirt and germs from them in order to promote healing. While we have antibacterial cleansers, rubbing alcohol, or soap and water, dogs don’t. So, they use their tongues.
Promote Healing
Interestingly, a dog’s saliva contains compounds called histatins which protect wounds from infection. Prior to the invention of modern antibiotics, allowing dogs to lick wounds was common practice, as it prevented infection and promoted healing.
The compounds in dog saliva also encourage skin cells to close around an open wound. Nitric oxide is also introduced into a cut, which has antibacterial properties.
Love and Caring
Your dog sees you as part of their pack, and it’s their job to help care for pack members. Dogs lick the wounds of other dogs, and they will lick yours too. It’s a sign that your dog feels responsible for your health and well-being.
They Like the Taste
Dogs are meat eaters, and their wild ancestors enjoy the taste of raw meat and blood. While it’s likely that your dog has never tasted raw meat, it doesn’t mean they don’t like how it tastes. Raw wounds taste like blood, which dogs usually enjoy.
Wounds also give off other flavours that dogs like to lick. Your skin, for example, tastes like salt.
Comfort
Dogs are very in tune with their owner’s moods and emotions. If your dog senses that you are in pain, they will do everything in their power to improve it. This involves licking your wound to make it better.
Is it Bad to Let Dogs Lick Your Wounds?
There is no simple answer to whether you should allow your dog to lick at your wounds.
Healing
We’ve discussed the properties of dog saliva that may promote healing, and experts agree that these healing properties exist. However, dogs have very dirty mouths that can harbour nasty bacteria. If you want to use the healing properties of saliva, you may be better off using your own.
Infection
The bacteria in a dog’s mouth doesn’t affect dogs the same way it affects humans. Pasteurella, for example, thrives in cuts and puncture wounds but can cause serious complications. Many amputations have occurred due to Pasteurella infection, and serious cases can become life-threatening.
Risks to Your Dog
If you apply antibiotic cream like Polysporin to your cut and your dog subsequently licks it, they are likely to ingest some of the creams. While a tiny amount won’t hurt them, Polysporin and Neosporin contain an antibiotic called Neomycin, which can cause hearing loss in dogs. Before you panic, this usually only occurs with very large amounts and is more likely to happen with intravenous administration than oral ingestion.
Antibiotic cream can also cause stomach upset for your dog. It’s not likely to cause damage but could lead to temporary appetite loss, diarrhoea, or vomiting.
Should You Let Your Dog Lick Scabs and Wounds?
It’s not clear whether the risks outweigh the benefits of dogs licking wounds. While dog saliva can promote healing and prevent infection, it can also cause some very dangerous infections. So, you may be trading a slightly shorter healing time for a risk of a secondary infection.
While you don’t need to rush to the emergency room because your dog was licking a wound, you probably shouldn’t encourage the behaviour. Cleaning and covering open cuts is the best way to keep your dog from accessing them and minimize the risk of injury to both you and your dog.
Conclusion
It can be frustrating if your dog is obsessed with licking your scabs and cuts, but try to remember they do it because they love you. Covering your wounds is a good idea if you don’t want your dog to lick them. It can also be helpful to distract them with a toy or a treat.
Does your dog lick your wounds? Tell us in the comments below and share our article if you liked it!
