Does your Labrador lick the air? Flicking his tongue in and out for no apparent reason? In the latest article from The Happy Puppy Site, we look at the possible reasons that your dog is air licking. When it's normal, and when it might be a potential cause for concern. Why Do Dogs Lick The Air?
My labs "tongue flick" when they are happy and confident. For example, here is a lab that tongue flicks 1 tongue flick at 1sec, 2 tongue flick at 23-29 secs 5 tongue flicks at 1:30-1:45 secs I see tongue flicks on exciting marks and confident blinds, when they come to greet me, etc.
I would categorise these as stress flicks as a way of self-calming. It might be good stress (eustress) from being a bit over-aroused, but it’s stress nonetheless.
Obi sometimes licks the air when he’s getting a vigorous butt/rump scratch or if he’s giving himself a good scratch. His tongue goes straight in and out, sort of like he’s drinking the air. And he’s definitely enjoying the butt scratch (asks for more if you stop).
Yeah, that's a different thing - mine do that, too! There's no arousal issues there, it's just, "Man, that's goooooooooood!!"
I think tongue flicking may indicate three conditions: 1) Stress: NO! as pup is caught counter surfing, dog does not make eye contact, tucked tail, long tongue flicks 2) A submissive gesture, for example excited pups greeting mom returning..eye contact, wagging tail, tongue flicks 3) Subtle tongue flicking, high tail, lean forward ready to launch to retrieve with retrieving typically are retrieves that my labs are extremely confident and typically pin that mark or line that blind retrieve.
