Baby Dragon Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 (edited) Does anyone have any idea of what this could be? I've asked on this forum before and I've been given a few ideas. But I thought with a video of it now it might help to get a few more ideas? He licks and licks and licks, the floor, the walls, doors, furniture... anything he can get to. And then he vomits. And he does it again and again. Sometimes it goes on for several hours. I haven't been able to find a trigger for it. It can happen before or after he eats. I've spoken with vets (and had him examined) and a behaviourist but there have been no conclusions... My previous topics about it are here (I had to make a new topic because the other ones were too old to reply to): http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/175618-licking-frenzy/page__hl__licking http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/211155-dog-lick-lick-licking/page__p__5016877__hl__licking__fromsearch__1#entry5016877 He used to do it a couple of times a year, but he's done it 3 times in the past month so I'd really like some answers. I want to help him but not sure what to do for him when it happens... Has anyone seen this before with another dog? Edited March 18, 2012 by Baby Dragon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mybilly Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 Hi, my lakeland terrier does this when he wants to go outside and eat grass, he licks the floor and only for a few minutes. No idea why he does it except for feeling a bit sick hense the need to eat grass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rappie Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 (edited) How long is each episode? Does it only happen once, or is it something that occurs intermittently over a coupe of days. I have seen some dogs with anxiety that will actively lick things, but it is much more deliberate that what your dog is doing in the video. I would consider, perhaps, an issue with the oral or pharyngeal cavity. In cases I have seen that have presented in a similar fashion, they have required an oral examination under general anaesthesia to be able to find the source of the problem (causes have been things like swallowed sewing thread, tonsilitis, severe ulcerative pharyngitis, dental associated gingivitis, small bone fragments lodged between teeth etc). This might be something to consider. Nausea can certainly cause licking, but it is more typically a 'lip smacking' type action. Edited March 18, 2012 by Rappie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Dragon Posted March 18, 2012 Author Share Posted March 18, 2012 (edited) Thank you mybilly and Rappie. Rappie, the episodes can last anything from an hour to 4 - 5 hours. The strange thing is, if I catch him at the very start, I can sometimes distract him with treats or toys and this will stop the behaviour. But only if I catch him at the very start. Once he's been doing it for a minute or so, it's impossible to stop him. When I rushed him to the emergency vet the first time it happened, they couldn't find anything, they suspected a bad taste on his tongue. By the time we arrived at the vet, I think the car ride was enough to distract him and he had stopped doing it. I've also wondered if it could be anxiety. He was a rescue dog and is very highly strung. I just can't pick a trigger for it - something that causes anxiety before it starts, or food-related, or anything. It seems completely random. He licks and licks and will actually try to eat any dirt/fluff that he can find on the floor, and then he vomits, then starts the licking again and the cycle continues. There are no other symptoms, and there never have been at any time it's happened. He's totally himself today. But it sounds like I should take him in for an oral exam? Edited March 18, 2012 by Baby Dragon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Dragon Posted March 18, 2012 Author Share Posted March 18, 2012 (edited) Here's another video you can see that he's kind of gulping as he licks. I'm not sure if it could be realted, but one vet told me that he has a sensitive trachea. He kind of gulped when she touched his throat. This was when he was just in for his vaccination. But when I had him checked the next vet visit (by a different vet) the vet couldn't find anything wrong and he wasn't gulping that time when she touched it. Not sure if it's related... Edited March 18, 2012 by Baby Dragon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 :( that looks really uncomfortable and upsetting . I hope you can find out what's causing it. poor boy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lavendergirl Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 Poor fellow - he sure looks miserable. What checks have the vets done - sorry I haven't looked at the other threads. Have they done a blood screen on him? They really need to be working a bit harder by the sounds of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Anne~ Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 This is what my Monte does but I think Monte's licking is related to his condition. I once read an article though about an ulcer or something along those lines causing the licking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lavendergirl Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 (edited) My thought was that it may be something systemic that manifests in either the nausea that generates the licking or a compulsion of some sort that is driven by an imbalance he is trying to correct - hence my question about bloods to test for diabetes thyroid etc. That is, it may not be related to the throat at all. A thorough scope and blood work up needs to be done. A behaviour disorder should only be considered after all this has been done - I feel very sorry for him he is a lovely obedient boy. Edited March 19, 2012 by lavendergirl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Dragon Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) Thank you for all of the ideas. I'm going to ask about some of these things and show these videos to the vet. I think it's been hard for the vets to know what's going on because they've never actually seen him doing it, and it's hard to explain it, so hopefully these videos will help. Thank you again and please keep the ideas coming if you have more. Edited March 20, 2012 by Baby Dragon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charjas Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) Could it be a habit. Sometimes in children habits develop and then cannot be stopped. I have experience with this myself and my son who as ADHD has had many habits. Perhaps you need to distract him with some sort of noise and activity.Have you considered asking Doctor Harry. Better homes and gardens. He had a dog on recently with a similar problem Edited March 20, 2012 by Charjas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest lavendergirl Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Baby Dragon how is this boy going? Have the vets been able to help at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Her Majesty Dogmad Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 (edited) I rehomed an older poodle cross who used to lick my sofas constantly - she'd go round and round. I explained it to the potential new owner and they had leather sofas and weren't worried. She didn't do it for the first few weeks in her new home but then she started. It was an annoying habit and I wondered if it might have been a bit of dementia with her. Then when she didn't do it in her new home I'd wondered if it was anxiety related - obviously not when she started up again in the new home. Told the vets and they weren't concerned about it but it's hard to live with that's for sure. Edited April 9, 2012 by dogmad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erny Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 (edited) I get the sense that this is driven by something medical. This is only a guess of course, but it is a sense that I'm getting from his body language. He does certainly seem disturbed and uncomfortable by whatever it is that has him licking. Going by the staining on his chin, he licks quite a lot? Does he drool a lot? Teeth? In the first video, notice the bobbing of his head as he licks. The licking of items - that seems to me to be more of a displacement behaviour (sort of) as though he doesn't understand why he is licking and needs to direct it towards something. I'm anthropomorphising to a degree, but there is something very awkward about his behaviour. I could be wrong, as any of us could, but if it were me I would like medical investigation (bloods and physical examination, be it by xray, throat scope) first, to rule out any medical conditions. What Rappie said is where my intuition/feeling/impressions lay : ...I have seen some dogs with anxiety that will actively lick things, but it is much more deliberate that what your dog is doing in the video. I would consider, perhaps, an issue with the oral or pharyngeal cavity. In cases I have seen that have presented in a similar fashion, they have required an oral examination under general anaesthesia to be able to find the source of the problem (causes have been things like swallowed sewing thread, tonsilitis, severe ulcerative pharyngitis, dental associated gingivitis, small bone fragments lodged between teeth etc). This might be something to consider. Nausea can certainly cause licking, but it is more typically a 'lip smacking' type action. Edited April 10, 2012 by Erny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mason_Gibbs Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 I would also say its medical Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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