Licking the Bed

[Stephanie Bowman]

Hi all!

Worried doodle mom here...Teddy is five months now and we have slowly begun inviting him to the bed after we wake up, or just before bed. Teddy still sleeps in his crate. However, we have started to notice that Teddy has started to relentlessly lick the sheets and pillow cases. Should we be concerned by this behavior?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

No, it's nothing to be concerned about.

How do I put this delicately?...
Our dogs are very very attracted to things that have our bodily fluids and secretions on them. :) 

[Stephanie Bowman]

Totally understand haha! I unfortunately Googled it and read that it can be related to anxiety/ obsessive compulsive behaviors. I know that he suffers from some separation anxiety, but he's slowly becoming more independent by playing on his own and exploring the house on his own. My fear is that he's regressing. Thanks for your reassurance!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

:-}

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

One of my guys has some OCD behaviors, including licking....especially the carpet.  I calmly verbally correct him and redirect his attention when I see it and he stops.  As Karen said your case may be different, but I always stop any OCD behaviors by changing his focus.

[BG and Gavin]

Gavin sometimes licks his bed a bit before sleep and again in the morning.  We joke that he is brushing his teeth. I think he is gathering crumbs from his treats. I wouldn’t be too concerned, but I would redirect if it continued.

[Nancy]

Oliver is my licker!  He licks everything....beds, couches, floors, rugs and our pants.  He has been doing this for as long as I can remember, he is almost 7 years.  He definitely enjoys doing and but on the other hand, it is definitely an OCD behavior and we can stop him just by saying EH EH...No licking (when we catch him in the act).  It's annoying to us and we do correct him when he does it, especially when our guest say "um...why is Oliver licking my pant leg?"  LOL!!!