My Dixie is very licky. It can be annoying. I don't know why she does it but she stops if we tell her. She will also lick people on command!
Sometimes she does it, its almost as if for attention, like if I'm at the pc she will walk by and lick my arm. But she doesn't stop for attention, she walks by. Kinda like she is tasing me to make sure I'm still here!

Dave isn't licky. Thankfully- his tongue is bigger than Dixies! He will give one kiss and stop. Ask Dix for a kiss and she licks your face off Yuk!

I have heard that some dogs lick hands out of submission, my ex's jrt used to, if you stood near him he rolled over and if you bent down to him he licked you.

x

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-MY DOGS ARE NOT MY WHOLE LIFE- BUT THEY MAKE MY LIFE WHOLE-

Dave and Dixie
Milo and Maisy

My bichons are very licky, they are a very licky breed anyways, thats just the way they are, you can train them not too if you find it inapropriate. I think dogs show it as affection and also for attention.

that's what i think.

I wouldn't get too hung up on the dominance aspect, it's a red herring

It is a throwback to when they are puppies and lick their mother's mouths to be fed food that she regurgitates for them.

Glad you no it's not really a dominance thing now

Dominance is an often misunderstood word I think.
I mean by dominance;control, hierarchical ranking, upper level, decision-making, order. And not humiliation or oppression.

licking can be a sign of submission - which in a dog can also mean comfort and "affection" to some extent - like the pups (or a lot of other young animals to that extent) like their mother's mouth for food, the dog is thus 'telling' us that he is like a pup, harmless. (usually goes with hears backwards and body made to appear small)

It can also be a dominance thing - the mother licks her pups to groom them and in that process she controls them - if they dont like it they will still get groomed - a dog doing the same thing to their owner is saying that basically he is the "mother" and controls the owner. A dog that does that will usually lick quite obsessively and growl at signs of the human withdrawing from it - a dog doing that would most likely stand over the owner in a confident posture - I would say its certainly not the most common explanation

of course it can also be something "created" by the owners - if they give attention/affection when the dog licks the dog will learn it as a way to get his owners attention - or if the owner trains the dog to lick ..

Anyway those are behaviourists' theories I tend to agree with but other behaviourists may have different ideas maybe.

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This is true, it is often a misunderstood concept, too

The old dominance theories were flawed and have been disproven however some still live by them. However, there is no doubt that dogs live in a hierarchy, but it has little to do with the theories often told. Truly dominant dogs rarely, if ever, display these so called dominance displays. Many of the so called dominance behaviours are simply bad manners and the dog has learnt that it gets what it wants by do it.

my springer can be rude and pushy sometime's but his not dominant? although he is the boss of my lab and it work's fine she's happy with the way thing's are

great mind's. I think some times we think too much just enjoy your dog and let them enjoy you. if there's not a problem don't create one