Lick Mats for Dogs for Christmas? – McConnell Publishing Inc.

[We interrupt this program for a public service announcement: Amazing news about my forthcoming fiction novel! AWAY TO ME will be featured in a Goodreads giveaway from December 2nd thru December 16th! 75 lucky winners will receive Advanced Reader Copies. The book actually comes out Februrary 24, so you can be the first in line! (And, great Christmas present!) Here is the link:

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Okay, back to regularly scheduled programming:

Awhile ago, shopping in one of our go-to stores (Duluth Trading), I saw a “lick mat” for dogs, and thought “why not?” Recently, Whole Dog had an article, Best Dog Lick Mats, and I thought: “What a great Christmas present for a dog lover’s dog!” So I ordered two more, based on their recommendations, and here are the results.

Tall Tails Foraging Mat (purchased at Duluth Trading): It says, “satisfies the instinctual activity of foraging for food.” And, “Slows down eating and makes feeding fun!” It’s made of silicon, it’s dish washer safe, and is said to “slow down eating for better digestion” and keeps “dogs happy and healthy.” It comes in different styles (clover, below, versus river rock for example), has a skid resistant bottom, and can be put in the freezer. When I first got it I tried putting in kibble (which they show in one of their photos), and Maggie struggled so hard to get the kibble out I took pity on her and pulled it out myself. However, as you’ll see in a video below, she was successful at getting out wet food (hydrated Honest Kitchen, part of her usual dinner).

Woof Lick Mat: This is Whole Dog’s 2nd listed option, 3.5 paws, stating “The Woof LickMat is a great suction-backed option, feels sturdy and relatively rigid.” It is also made of silicon, has a “pre-portioned mixing bowl” in the middle (which feels unnecessary), has suction cups on the bottom to keep it stable, and if desired, can come with a mix to hydrate and use to smear around the mat.

Lickimat Classic Soother:  Whole Dog describes this as a great calming activity for your dog, not so much a puzzle toy or feeding device, but something like tongue-based meditation for dogs. I had quite the time getting it. I ordered it twice, never got the first one, and had given up on the second order after a few weeks when it finally came yesterday.

I’m interested in your experience if you’ve used them, but the ones we need to ask about the mats are the dogs, right? Here’s what happened when Skip and Maggie tried them out:

First, I decided to see if it would be useful giving Skip the ointment (Optimmune) we put into his eyes every day, because he has Pannus (an auto-immune disease that causes blindness if not treated. Skip is super good about getting the ointment inserted onto his eyeball, but I wondered if a lick mat would make it even easier. I’d say yes–watch the video below and see how easily it went. The video below was taken while he is getting used to having the ointment applied while I’m sitting–I’m switching from him lying down on his side, so that I don’t have to get up and down. It has always gone smoothly enough, he is such a dear dog, but it takes some patience to let him work up to having his eyelids held open. I’d say it took 30% to 50% less time with the lick mat, and he seemed more comfortable than ever. I’d call this a win/win.

Do notice though, in the video, that I had to ask him to “Stand” (which I usually use when he is moving his entire body) and “Stay” to keep him motionless–the licking action had to pause briefly for me to get the ointment into his eye. Notice too that he seemed uncomfortable when I first tried to put the med in his second eye, so I backed off and gave him a minute. That–giving him agency and lots of yummy reinforcement made this daily requirement easy and almost fun.

I tried another experiment, and put both lick mats down for Maggie and Skip to try. As you can see in the video below, Maggie went for the Tall Tails, and Skip for the Woof (but I think they were just closest to each dog). This time I put wet food in both mats, and both dogs licked away enthusiastically. You can’t see Skip’s tail in this video, but when he is relaxed and getting food he loves he wags his tail adorably, and it was sweeping back and forth regularly while he licked.

Both dogs licked and licked and licked. I wondered how Maggie would do–the raised silicon “clovers” made it much harder to get at the food than in the Woof mat. I remembered watching her trying to get out kibble earlier, when I thought she was sending out silent canine curses about being tortured. But this time she got reinforced right away; you can see both dogs were busy busy licking away. There wasn’t much to do but lick with the Woof, which Skip did enthusiastically. Maggie needed to nuzzle under the clovers, and had to work harder to get at the food, but she got reinforced enough to keep her at it.

After after five minutes, Maggie’s food was all gone (I put in about a heaping tablespoon), and Skip’s had food still in the crevices but I didn’t see how he could get any more out without turning his tongue into a toothpick.

The same thing happened with the Lickimat Soother– this is what was left after Skip licked and licked and licked. It seems inevitable that some food will be wasted with the Soother and the Woof. It was easy to clean, just felt a bit wasteful.

I‘d love to have a conversation about what lick mats truly do for dogs. They are clearly good distractions, and Skip is here to say that using them for mild medical or grooming procedures can work well. (The Woof and the Tall Tails have suction cups on the bottom to stabilize them, but neither would stick vertically to one of my walls.)

They also seem to be a great way to give your dog something different to do, which is going to feel extra important this week when it will be so cold I have to keep outdoor excursions short. They are clearly ways to slow down a dog’s dinner, especially a small breed who doesn’t have all that much to eat.

But the benefits I am most curious about are the claims related to some of the other benefits– for example, Lickimat Soother: “reduce Stress and anxiety” “and “satisfies the instinctual activity of foraging (Tall Tails).  Yes, dogs in the wild do indeed do some licking, but I’m not sure how much of a benefit this is for a dog in terms of “instinctual activities.” But the “soothing” claim has some science behind it. For example, a study from NIH found that, in our species anyway, chewing gum–repetitive mouth motion–reduced perceived stress. Knitting, another repetitive activity, is in the news lately as another way of decreasing anxiety and improving a sense of happiness. The benefits of repetitive motion for humans is well documented and has become part of the human wellness zeitgeist.

And yes, of course, dogs aren’t people but they are mammals and many of the neurological mechanisms are shared. There is thus reason to believe that repetitive licking could be good for dogs, especially given how constrained is the life of a domestic dog. BUT–last and important question! Couldn’t this be hard on a dog’s tongue? Seriously–canids in the wild don’t lick on things with little knobby points. I tried it myself and the Soother feels, well, like it’s a bit hard on one’s tongue. Human tongue, dog tongue? What’s the physical difference. Vets! Help me out here!!!

Jump in here, we need your input! Have you tried them? (I mean have your dogs tried them!) How does your dog behave–do they get excited when you get one out? How do you use them? Do you think I could buff up my tongue and use them myself when I get anxious about . . . oh, never mind.

MEANWHILE, back on the farm: Snow snow snow! The photos say it all, enjoy the winter wonderland!

Here’s to a week with moments of joy and wonder. I’ll be with you again the Monday before Christmas. (And, if you are reading this on Tuesday, December 2nd, don’t forget that Love Has No Age Limit is on Super Sale for Giving Tuesday–hoping to inspire dog lovers around the country to buy them in bulk and donate them to their local shelter. THANK YOU if you can manage to add this to your list.