The dog has a long powerful tongue that can both be used to remove dried up mud from the dog’s fur and at the same time be gentle and soft to give affectionate licks.
At birth, puppies will at once feel maternal affection. The puppies are licked to show the mother’s affection. When puppies lick each other they are starting to bond. Licking to show affection is commonly seen in dogs that live together in one household.
Dogs that meet in a park seldom lick each other and if ever they do, licking is done with another purpose and not to show affection.The alpha dog decides who gets to eat first. Dogs lower in rank would lick the mouth of the alpha dog to ask for food. It is also a sign of being submissive to the alpha dog.
Oftentimes you will see a dog licking the head, the back or the ears of another. A dog can not reach these parts of the body with its own tongue. Grooming and cleaning therefore has to be done by another dog.
For healing
Did you know that a dog’s saliva is believed to have antibiotic qualities? A dog would lick the wounds of another dog to clean and to hasten the healing process. Likewise it is done to comfort an ailing or wounded dog.
The Most Likely Answer
Grooming each other is a way of bonding with each other. It is common for a subordinate to groom a dominant member of the pack. The face is a common place for licking each other as the mouth often has essence of food recently eaten, the eyes and ears sometimes exude stuff (tears, wax) and smell interesting. Sniffing and licking of the ears, eyes and genitalia is also a way for them to assess the health of the one they are licking as infection will taste different from healthy.
If the being licked is enjoying herself and the one licking is happy to be licking, there is really nothing to worry about. They are clearly well bonded and enjoy the intimacy of their relationship.
The one being licked is clearly the top The one licking is showing deference to her superiordog.
I hope this helps.
Yorky Mom
