Dog Keeps Licking Lips and Swallowing?

Last Updated on October 20, 2022 by Evan

You notice your dog keeps licking lips and swallowing. Is it trying to appease, or does it have an injury?

Can it even be a sign of illness? We check whether this behavior is normal.

We then clarify when the symptoms are more likely to indicate illness or injury.

Dog Constantly Licks Its Mouth: Is This Normal?

There may be an injury or an underlying illness if a dog is licking its mouth constantly. Dogs also use this gesture for communication.

The situations in which a dog uses licking as a reassurance signal will be explained later. First, we will clarify which medical reasons could exist.

What Illnesses Could There Be?

Repeated short licking over the snout is quite normal. However, if this becomes permanent or if your dog does this remarkably often, there may be other causes. If your dog is constantly licking its lips and swallowing, you need to start drilling deeper.

Your dog could be constantly licking its lips because of an injury or illness. In this is the case, schedule an appointment with your veterinarian immediately!

Diseases of The Mouth and Throat

• Inflammation of the gums
• Broken tooth, or inflammation of the tooth
• Throat infections
• Inflammation and infection of the tongue

All of this is painful for your dog. Dogs feel pain like we humans do. Nevertheless, they do not project this pain as seriously as we do.

Regular dental hygiene by brushing your teeth or using cleaning chewy articles promotes dental health. In addition, you should check your dog’s teeth regularly.

If it can no longer be removed by brushing its teeth, a veterinarian can help. If a dog breaks a tooth, please go to the vet immediately.

Dogs are also given tooth fillings. The tooth is then sealed to prevent inflammation. An exposed tooth can lead to massive inflammation and pain.

Teeth problems is not the only reason why your dog might be constantly licking its lips. Lick Fits is a disease with similar symptoms. Dogs suffering from Lick Fits show this through permanent salivation and swallowing.

They stretch their necks forward, sometimes to the point of almost choking. Grass is often eaten, and the floor or walls licked. The dogs appear panicky and restless. They swallow their saliva more frequently than usual. These dogs eat very hectically. They often chew textiles and furniture.

Lick Fits is usually a disease emanating from the upper stomach and intestines. This can lead to over- or underproduction of the stomach acid. Stress, wrong food, allergies, and intolerance can also be the trigger.

If your dog is showing these symptoms, it must be brought to a veterinarian.

Symptoms of a Metabolic Disorder

• Dog has strong salivation, also over the lips
• Dog smacks a lot
• Dog is constantly licking its lips
• Dog drinks and eats a lot, with steady weight loss
• Dog looks dull and tired, shows a clear loss of energy

Life-threatening bloat in dogs, a gastritis, heartburn or dangerous bloat may be the reason, if a dog is constantly licking its lips.

Symptoms for Life-Threatening Diseases

• Heavily inflated belly
• Vomiting and gagging
• Diarrhea, often bloody
• Increased smacking and yawning
• Salivates heavily over the lips
• Dog licks its mouth constantly
• Inertia
• Obvious abdominal pain
• Dog cannot lie down or sit relaxed
• Dog is very restless

If these symptoms occur, a veterinarian should be called immediately. If a twisted stomach is confirmed, only emergency surgery can save the dog’s life. In this case, the first way is to go to a veterinary clinic.

Inform them in advance by telephone. This saves valuable time and the dog can be operated on as soon as it arrives.

A stomach twist is extremely critical! Even with successful surgery, many dogs do not survive the following days. Rehabilitation can take months. Meals must be split into 5-8 meals a day. The dog is then only allowed to eat in tiny portions.

If dog diseases trigger the dog to lick its lips all the time, there is usually a remedy given by your veterinarian. All symptoms can be brought under control by a prescribed therapy and, if necessary, a change in diet.

Please do not hesitate and get medical advice immediately, so that your beloved four-legged friend can recover soon.

Do Not Panic if Your Dog Gives These Signals

Signs That Are Normal and Harmless

• Dog happily waits for its food
• Dog has been rewarded with treats, resulting in increased salivating
• Dog have just finished drinking water
• Dogs that are in relaxed state sometimes smack in their sleep

If residues from food get caught in the inter-dental spaces, then your dog might lick its mouth constantly. To help your dog, carefully perform a search of the outer and inner teeth. Once you have found the remains, you can easily remove them.

Also check the last tooth at the back of the mouth to see whether there is any stuck food residue. To do this, carefully pull the lips away to the side. Sometimes your dog could literally be making “thick cheeks” signs because the snot is stuck there.

In all these situations, licking the snout should not last too long! Once you have removed the food residues, the dog licks its mouth a maximum of one to three times. Then it should be fine again.

However, if it does not stop eating, there might be other reasons for the behavior.

Appeasement Signal: This Is What It Looks Like

Fortunately, there might not always necessarily be a medical condition. When communicating with dogs, it is quite normal for them to lick their mouths.

They are appeasement signals that they use, for example, in dog encounters. Especially when other dogs approach or come up with threatening gestures.

Soothed Dog: The Way to Avoid Trouble

Even if the dog is supposed to get into trouble, he uses this appeasement signal. Dogs often know exactly what they can and cannot do.

That does not stop them from doing exactly the things that come to their minds. One such trigger is the frustration of watching their owners leave.

Dog owners who cannot take their dogs to work often experience unsightly scenes when they come home. Exploded sofa cushions, cleared kitchen cupboards. Yellow sacks and organic garbage cans that are spread throughout the house.

Some dogs are just bored, others are frustrated, and some are afraid that they have been abandoned. And if the owner does not believe in its innocence, the dog can start to appease as a precaution.

In stressful situations, dogs can also calm themselves down by constantly licking their lips. This can be seen more frequently in the waiting room of the veterinary practice.

For many dogs, visiting the vet is stressful. They smell the medication, see the state of mind of the other animals, maybe hear a painful cry.

They have often already had unsightly experiences themselves. You usually only go to the vet if the dog is sick or is to be vaccinated. For the dog, this means “I’m feeling bad” or “I’m hurt”. For this reason, many dogs have elevated stress levels at the veterinarian and use appeasement signals.

Conclusion: Dog Keeps Licking Lips and Swallowing

Clearly every master loves their four-legged friend. Not everything that dogs do must indicate that they are down with a bad illness.

By the same token, it does not mean you should panic the next time you notice your dog keeps licking lips and swallowing. Slowly and patiently observe how often your dog is repeating the act and react accordingly and appropriately.