Dogs are fascinating creatures.
They can learn commands, recognize their names, understand routines, read our emotions, and somehow know exactly when we’re about to open a bag of treats from three rooms away.
And yet, every so often, a dog will completely abandon all of that higher reasoning to sit down and lick its own junk.
Not casually, either. I’m talking about the kind of licking that becomes a full-time occupation. The dog is completely absorbed. You can call its name. You can wave your hand. You can blow a dog whistle and activate their shock collar.
Nothing. It’s busy.
I recently watched a dog become so thoroughly engrossed in this pastime that its owner couldn’t get its attention at all. Eventually, the dog stopped, looked up, and made that face only a dog can make …
One ear half-cocked. Tongue hanging out. Completely vacant expression.
It looked like it was thinking:
“I’m sorry, were you saying something?”
And that’s when I realized there is really only one reasonable explanation for this behavior.
Why do dogs lick their own junk? Because they can.