Dog Obsessed with Licking and Biting My Hands – Top 3 Reasons Why

Here are the most common reasons for dogs that obsessively lick and bite on their owner’s hands.

1. Your hand is a dog toy

This could be due to miseducation. You may have accidentally made your hands a fun toy for dogs to interact with. This can happen if you never stopped your dog from licking and biting your hands during play while they were still young. You might find that dogs will only chew your hands and none of the chew toys you provide them with.

You may have also not taught your dog the pain you feel when they chew your hands. It might be a bit too late now but it’s important for you to yelp and stop play if your dog chews your hand again. This is how dogs learn to not bite other dogs with too much pressure while they are playing together.

2. Your dog is mouthing

The general intent of mouthing is harmless. Some dogs may gently put their teeth over a person’s hand as a way to communicate. It could be a sign of play, grooming, and affection. It’s probably not a problem if they only do this occasionally. The mouthing behavior, however, may become an issue if the dog does it all the time.

3. Dog is anxious or stressed

In some situations, dogs may obsessively lick or bite your hand to get your attention. They could do this because they are stressed or anxious. The chewing behavior could be a sign of warning or a way for dogs to communicate to their owners about their stressed state.

How to stop a dog from licking and chewing your hands

It’s important to set boundaries when it comes to dog chewing and licking behaviors. Even if the intent is harmless, letting your dog chew your hand can set the wrong precedence in the future. The dog may repeat this behavior with other dogs. The reaction might not always be positive in such cases.

There are a number of tactics that may help stop a dog from obsessively licking and chewing your hands. The first step is to take out the entertainment factor. if your dog is chewing your hand during play, stop as soon as they do so. Don’t punish the dog. Just stop playing and walk away. The lack of reaction will eventually get to the dog and he will find something more appropriate to chew during play time.

Next, redirect their attention to something that can be lickd or chewed. Make sure your dog has access to plenty of chew toys that act as appropriate substitutes for your hands. Change isn’t going to happen overnight. It may take a few weeks before you start seeing a change in your dog’s chewing behavior.