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Updated: May 18, 2026

The Other End of the Leash: An Experimental Test to Analyze How Owners Interact with Their Pet Dogs
Published on: October 13, 2017
[Is being licked by dogs not dirty?]
Paul Overgaauw1, Frans van Knapen
1Afdeling Veterinaire Volksgezondheid IRAS, faculteit Diergeneeskunde, Yalelaan 2, 3581 CM Utrecht. p.a.m.overgaauw@uu.nl
Abstract:
Being licked by pet dogs is frequently a common advice in articles for the uninitiated. An overview is given about the special antibacterial and wound healing properties of human and canine saliva. New developments in the human area are presumably assigned to dog saliva. Because of the presence of a quite different mouth flora including various potential zoonotic pathogens, it is strictly not advised to let dogs lick the wounds or face of the human.
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