licking the side of walls and desk????????

[Meb]

Meb keeps licking the corner of our wall (drywall painted) and our metal computer desk. We got a woodstove in our house this winter so it is dry in the house -even with the humidifier running and Meb will get a "shock" off the metal desk but still continues to touch it with his nose??? Do you think this has anything to do with a deficiency of any kind? Or maybe just a habit. My dogs get the best food and homemade dog biscuits. Thanks for any input.

[DogGone]

It might be a deficiency I suspect it might be a symptom of boredom, kind of like fidgeting and compulsive behavior.

My dog will lick the chrome on my office chairs. I think it's just a way for her to pacify her boredom and to ask for something to do and for some reason it must taste good to her.

My dog will also lick down the sides of the bath tub and shower walls after I take a shower. It took me a while to figure out why and how I was getting all the wet doggy footprints in my bathroom. I put the pieces together when I saw the footprints on the floor of the bathtub. After I noticed that I could hear her getting in and out of the bathtub and licking the walls as I was getting dressed in my bedroom. Since then I've caught her in the act by seeing her. I didn't discipline her and really haven't tried to stop it because it's not that much of a problem and I figure we all have our little bad habits and there is much bigger problems to be concerned with. She licks water off the sides of the bathtub and shower despite the fact she has water in her water bowls and a freshly flushed toilet. For some reason she prefers to lick the water off the sides of the shower, perhaps it's just something to do, perhaps the water taste better because it's more aerated, or perhaps it smells better because of the perfumes in the soap. At least now I know how so much dog hair has been getting in my bathtub.

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On a tangent. My bathtub drain rusted out, so I replaced it with a barkeeps drain. The barkeeps drain is a little deeper and has a strainer with more surface area. The strainer is a convenient little basket that easily lifts out. So the dog hair less frequently clogs up the strainer, drain and it's easier to clean the strainer. Houseguests are often baffled and/or jealous of the drain I have in my bathtub.

[Chicagocanine]

I have a cat who likes to lick the plastic shelf sitting on my computer desk. She also used to lick the bars of my pet rat's cage until one day when the rat bit her tongue!

[TxRider]

Mine lick anything.

Me, My jeans, people's shoes and feet.. But more than anything they lick the leather sofa and pillows.

Kaya will start licking her foot, and just keep right on going onto the sofa cushion, and lick the whole surface of a cushion , move on to the pillow and just keep on going unless I stop her.

[cassadee7]

I don't know why they do it, but my dog is 11 and has always had a 'thing' for licking his metal tags on his collar. He will sit there and bend his face all down in a knot practically to lick his tags. No idea why. But he is healthy.

[Mandalay]

Mandalay has been licking the ottoman lately. I dont know if maybe Dharma spilled something there and we did not see it orif she just likes the feel of rough fabric on her tongue. She has also been licking my toes the last few days, which grosses me out.

My Doberman used to lick everything she could. She would stand there and lick the glass door, the window, the wall, the couch, table legs...you name it.

[GSDolch]

dunno if you do or not, but do you have kids? and is it possible that you or someone touched some of those spots after having foot?

My dog will constantly like the kids toys or walls or anything they touched after they had food. lol.

[Cathygirl]

Cindy,
Is this something Meb just started doing? Could something of been spilled in that area and you didn't know it? Does Norman hang in that area and maybe mark it with rubbing his face?
I know that mine seem to go in phases where they want to lick the tile floor while they are laying down. Or they want to lick the blanket they are laying on.
I wonder if it would work to find a natural or non-toxic solution to rub on those areas that would be a deterrent?

[Lin]

Originally Posted By: DogGoneI suspect it might be a symptom of boredom, kind of ... compulsive behavior.

This has been my experience with most licking behavior. Tessa is high drive and working lines and if she isn't getting enough stimulation, be it physical or mental, she starts to lick. She will usually zone out while she is licking and if you say her name she startles and snaps out of it.

[Meb]

thanks everyone for the comments. I think it is a combination of boredom (winter months) and like Cathy said our cat probably rubs on these spots.