# Why does my dog lick carpet? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 1, 2006, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938 "2006-08-01T21:40:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Rumpleforskin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5e9695/32.png) [@Rumpleforskin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumpleforskin)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/1 "2006-08-01T21:40:57Z")
. . . Hehe not the kind of carpet your thinking of, I mean the carpet you walk on. My dog has been sniffing around the carpet (which is brand new by the way) and when he finds a spot he likes he licks it until it is soaking wet. Usually after licking his anus. Wait, everything he does comes after licking his anus. Anyway, why does he do it? ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/2 "2006-08-01T22:53:05Z")
Maybe he’s cleaning his tongue? My dog does this too, but the carpet is old and full of flavor. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![malkavia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malkavia/32/5621_2.png) [@malkavia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/malkavia)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/3 "2006-08-01T23:14:04Z")
(insert obligatory lesbian joke here) ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2006, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/4 "2006-08-01T23:55:23Z")
My dogs do it, too- so much so that they know what I mean when I tell 'em to stop doing it. They always look so guilty… Anyway, my theory is that they start by licking their paws (grooming, I suppose- but maybe they just like fritos). After a while, they just kinda… miss. They accidentally start licking the carpet near their paws. Once they start doing that, they just keep doing it- dogs have a tendency to do that sort of thing. Dogs were nature’s first attempt at a neurotic, or so I hear. I suppose it’s basically just a compulsive behavior- they aren’t even aware that they’re doing it, it’s just a way to pass the time. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/5 "2006-08-02T00:43:15Z")
Carpet is tasty. Evidently. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/6 "2006-08-02T03:31:21Z")
Perhaps he has excreted some anal juices from his anal glands and feels compelled to lick it up (our dog does this.) ---
**Author:** ![Rumpleforskin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5e9695/32.png) [@Rumpleforskin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumpleforskin)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/7 "2006-08-02T06:31:51Z")
[QUOTE=1920s Style “Death Ray”] Perhaps he has excreted some anal juices from his anal glands and feels compelled to lick it up (our dog does this.) [/QUOTE] I saw something similar in a porno movie. I didn’t know dogs did it though. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/8 "2006-08-02T06:51:43Z")
[QUOTE=Jackmannii] Carpet is tasty. Evidently. [/QUOTE] Why haven’t food product manufacturers caught on to this yet? I _demand_ carpet-flavored ice cream. Cripes, this is a completely untapped gold mine. Think of the possibilities! Carpet-flavored T.V. dinners! Minty Carpet Altoids! Have you tried the exotic French dish _Escargo a la Carpét_? Dogs are brilliant. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/9 "2006-08-02T07:08:28Z")
[QUOTE=malkavia] (insert obligatory lesbian joke here) [/QUOTE] I never get to these threads quickly enough! ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/10 "2006-08-02T13:18:31Z")
[QUOTE=1920s Style “Death Ray”] Perhaps he has excreted some anal juices from his anal glands and feels compelled to lick it up (our dog does this.) [/QUOTE] Between this and the idea that you sometimes have to squeeze out said glands, the hypothetical dog is becoming less of a possibility. :: bleah ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/11 "2006-08-02T13:26:40Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] Maybe he’s cleaning his tongue? My dog does this too, but the carpet is old and full of flavor. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Eeeew. Just the thought of that freaks me out. Full flavored carpeting is so gross! My large and bountiful cat gets going on his paws and then moves to the cushion on the couch. He liked it so much one day that he roughed up the nap on the fabric. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/12 "2006-08-02T13:29:57Z")
Maybe he won’t do it anymore if you stop with the peanut butter. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/13 "2006-08-02T13:31:59Z")
[QUOTE=Ludovic] Maybe he won’t do it anymore if you stop with the peanut butter. [/QUOTE] You win the thread. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Carlyjay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Carlyjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carlyjay)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/14 "2006-08-02T13:41:23Z")
[QUOTE=Rigamarole] I _demand_ carpet-flavored ice cream. Cripes, this is a completely untapped gold mine. [/QUOTE] _I_ demand ice-cream-flavoured carpet. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/15 "2006-08-02T13:58:29Z")
[QUOTE=gigi] Between this and the idea that you sometimes have to squeeze out said glands, the hypothetical dog is becoming less of a possibility. :: bleah [/QUOTE] That’s what vets and groomers are for. No way I’m squeezing anything out of his puckering anus ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/16 "2006-08-02T14:20:07Z")
I spilled a little bit of food on the carpet back in 2001, and my spaniel has been returning to the same spot for an occasional lick ever since. Although this is not food-related, my chocolate Lab defeated a groundhog in a pitched battle in the back yard awhile back, and returned repeatedly to the site, much like Civil War veterans returning to Gettysburg to relive the action. She did nip the groundhog in the butt and it may have been tasty as well. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/17 "2006-08-02T14:46:28Z")
[QUOTE=1920s Style “Death Ray”] That’s what vets and groomers are for. No way I’m squeezing anything out of his puckering anus [/QUOTE] I’m with you, man. That smell is one of the most horrid stinks I’ve ever encountered. I’m wondering if the dog may be attracted to some sort of chemical in (or on) the new carpet. The “new carpet smell” comes from a process of off-gassing as the chemicals break down. That said, some dogs just seem to like licking cloth. My eldest dog will lay on the bed and lick the sheets. I always try to stop her when I catch her because she’s probably ingesting fabric softners which can’t be good for her. She’ll also lick pants if they’re left laying out, and the sofa. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/18 "2006-08-02T16:30:57Z")
Kid Kalhoun had a kitten that would “nurse” on the corner of the collar of his shirt. Some animals are fabric freaks, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/19 "2006-08-02T16:38:47Z")
Kid Kalhoun had a kitten that would “nurse” on the corner of the collar of his shirt. Some animals are fabric freaks, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2006, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-my-dog-lick-carpet/366938/20 "2006-08-02T18:17:51Z")
My dog does it because he’s an idiot. A plain old idiot.