Licking, Smacking Lips? Don't Know What He's Doing

[AllDogBoots]

I want to update everyone. We stopped the Leba III about 4 days ago. It seems Cooper has completely stopped the licking behavior during the day and has dramatically stopped (probably by about 50%) the behavior at night. I've heard it over the past couple of nights, but it seems to be getting less and less each day. It seems that last night he only did the mouth/licking behavior when he was settling into sleep mode. He sometimes does that and I can almost here nnnya nnnya nnnya i'm going to sleep mom.

I'm not saying it's definitely the Leba III, but since we stopped using it, he seems to be getting better.

[megansmomma]

Originally Posted by AllDogBoots

I want to update everyone. We stopped the Leba III about 4 days ago. It seems Cooper has completely stopped the licking behavior during the day and has dramatically stopped (probably by about 50%) the behavior at night. I've heard it over the past couple of nights, but it seems to be getting less and less each day. It seems that last night he only did the mouth/licking behavior when he was settling into sleep mode. He sometimes does that and I can almost here nnnya nnnya nnnya i'm going to sleep mom.

I'm not saying it's definitely the Leba III, but since we stopped using it, he seems to be getting better.

That's really great news that Cooper is feeling better. I hadn't posted prior but had thought the exact same things as several others about the Leba possibly being the cause. I'm glad that you have seen an improvement and change.

[AllDogBoots]

Originally Posted by megansmomma

That's really great news that Cooper is feeling better. I hadn't posted prior but had thought the exact same things as several others about the Leba possibly being the cause. I'm glad that you have seen an improvement and change.

Thanks. There's not much information at all about the negative side effects. In fact, there are none publicly known. My vet highly recommended it as most of the dogs she sees are on it with no issues. The website says it's 100% no side effects. I believe it's the Leba III, as it's the only thing that really makes sense. I'll be sure to blog about it and do my best to make this public, but want to wait to still study Cooper's behavior.

[lisaly]

I think Leba III stimulates the saliva in the dog's mouth, and then the enzymes work to reduce tartar. I never tried it, but my veterinarian usually highly recommends it. He is usually very conservative with medication. Ashley was sixteen when I found out about Leba III, and we didn't want to try anything new on her. I do think that having the dentals done yearly (or when necessary) really makes a big difference in their health. The Benadryl might also be drying out his mouth. I'm glad Cooper is doing better.

[AllDogBoots]

I'm sorry to keep flip flopping...

I don't think it's the Leba III

Cooper did the licking behavior throughout the night last night at random intervals. When I thought it was the Leba III (3 days ago) i reintroduced adding a few kibbles of Life's Abundance food into his regular food. I bought Life's Abundance after finding out that he loved his sample trial. I started it about the same time as the Leba III, about 8 weeks ago and only gave it to him sporadically. 3 days ago i started giving him a little bit with his food each day.

Could this be a reaction to the food? He is otherwise very healthy, and I don't really think the licking behavior is a health issue....i just don't know.

He also wanted to eat very late last night right before bed. Perhaps I will once again take away the Life's Abundance and not let him eat after 6pm. Maybe it was the late feeding, although I don't think he had an upset tummy at all. There are no other symptoms of anything whatsoever.

Maybe it's just a quirk.

[ladyjane]

Honestly, if he is starting again, I would contact the vet. Did they do a culture of his throat? Maybe he never really got rid of that infection?? Just a thought.

[AllDogBoots]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Honestly, if he is starting again, I would contact the vet. Did they do a culture of his throat? Maybe he never really got rid of that infection?? Just a thought.

They didn't do a culture. I've seen the vet 3 times since last time he had the infection. 2 different vets (same practice) said he appears in perfect health. If I want I can spend $500 for extensive bloodwork but they didn't think it was necessary. It was up to me. The infection caused a slightly different effect on him...he was gulping and swallowing very heavily with a high fever. He doesn't do that now.

It's not that I don't want to spend the money....i just don't know if it's necessary as he's showing no signs of any other issues.

EDIT:
I'm going to see if i can somehow video tape him. Another forum member suggested that maybe it's dust mites, since it's only occurring in the bedroom. We've since begun making changes in the bedroom to kill off any possible mites.

[ladyjane]

Gotcha! That is interesting it is only in the bedroom...maybe it is dust mites. Those things are everywhere and a common cause of allergies.

[AllDogBoots]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Gotcha! That is interesting it is only in the bedroom...maybe it is dust mites. Those things are everywhere and a common cause of allergies.

It seems that it started about a month ago, right after the throat infection and at the same time I introduced Leba III and the new food

Could be anything. If it's dust mites I'm not terribly worried although it's disgusting. I cleaned my entire bedroom, bleached all linens and bought a protective mattress cover. I'll have to work on the floors. I'm not sure if dust mites would cause scratching because he's not scratching all that much.

[spiritwings1202]

This is strange,
I remember Daisy once did this and she had eaten a bee and it must of stung her on the mouth. she had a slight allergic reaction.
I wonder if it is an allergy
did you change laundry det or anything different in the bedroom?
new comforter?

[AllDogBoots]

This has been going on for a while now. It just started about 6 weeks ago. Otherwise he is super healthy. He scratches a little bit but nothing unusual. He only does this at night, while he's sleeping in bed. I changed from a down feather comforter to a plain cotton comforter. Made no difference. I now have him on plain food, no treats, no Leba III just to see if it's an allergy.

I gave him Benadryl last night and it didn't make any difference whatsoever.

Not sure what blood work the vet said I could do. They don't even know what to test for because they think it's nothing.

I also read in a thread recently that allergy tests are a waste of time.

[spiritwings1202]

Is he drinking enough water?
Does he only do it when he is sleeping?

[AllDogBoots]

Originally Posted by spiritwings1202

Is he drinking enough water?
Does he only do it when he is sleeping?

He drinks, he eats, he plays, he poops. Everything totally normal. Yes it's only during sleeping. Or, not necessarily sleeping, but in the middle of the night when he may wake up, look around and rest his head again. It's not dreaming because his eyes are open.

[spiritwings1202]

weird.......Maybe teeth or gums bothering him?
I am just guessing...It is so confusing when they do something and we can't figure out why.
I guess if everything else is normal I would not worry...easier said than done bc I am a worry wart.

[AllDogBoots]

Originally Posted by spiritwings1202

weird.......Maybe teeth or gums bothering him?
I am just guessing...It is so confusing when they do something and we can't figure out why.
I guess if everything else is normal I would not worry...easier said than done bc I am a worry wart.

I would think teeth or gums, but he doesn't paw at his mouth at all. He lets me put my fingers in his mouth to look at his teeth and gums. I have no idea what I'm looking at but nothing looks odd. I'm a paranoid mom too. I just wish I knew why he did this. I would hate it to be something that I could have caught at such an early time. Or it's nothing.