12/23/2025
They say when your dog licks your skin, most people think he's just giving you kisses... and they aren't wrong.
But what he is doing is much deeper, more complex and more emotional than you imagine.
Your dog doesn’t just lick you: it biologically scans you. His tongue functions like a more advanced chemical sensor than any machine. Your skin has salts, pheromones and invisible traces; with just one lick, his brain processes information like terabytes. He knows where you've been, he knows what you've eaten, and can even tell if you've petted another dog just three hours earlier.
But this is just the scientific part. Here something even more powerful comes into play: for him, licking is not just any gesture, it's a return to the origin. His mother did it to calm him down, to tell him, “You’re safe here.” And when he does it to you, he is saying exactly the same thing: “You are my family. You are my safe place”.
And there's something even more surprising: your dog senses your emotional pain. When you're stressed, sad, or going through a difficult time, your skin releases little chemical signals — cortisol, hormones, traces that you don't even notice, but that it clearly feels. That's why, in those moments, sometimes it licks you more than usual.
He ain't waving at you, he ain't playing. He’s literally trying to wipe that sadness off your body. It’s his way of telling you, “Let me help you, don’t carry this weight alone.”
What many call simple saliva is actually her way of offering you emotional medicine.
So next time your dog licks you, remember: it’s not just affection, it’s his way of caring for you, reading to you, hugging you without arms... because the love of dogs for their humans is endless. 🐾❤️. (Shared author unknown)
