We know that dogs lick our faces as a way to express friendliness, but the dirtiest part of a dog is its saliva. Dog saliva contains quite a lot of bacteria, but if we reject this behavior, we might hurt the dog's feelings. So facing this situation, many people feel conflicted. So should we stop dogs from licking our faces? Actually, it’s still best to stop this behavior.

       From the perspective that dogs lick human faces to show submission, letting them lick cheeks is not a big deal. However, generally speaking, a puppy’s mouth can have as many as over 150 kinds of bacteria. Also, because of eating, dogs often have saliva around their mouths; moreover, as everyone knows, dogs lick their own rear after using the toilet to clean themselves. If the dog has roundworms or other parasites living in the digestive tract, it’s also possible to infect humans through licking the face.

       If a dog wants to lick a person’s face, it usually leaps at them from the ground. Anyone would be frightened by this, and if the dog is medium or large sized, there is a high risk of the person being knocked down. Even though the dog means well, it’s easy to cause injuries to both.

       Do not use scolding, punishment, or expressing anger to forbid this behavior; it is best to divert the dog’s attention to stop this habit.

       Although the dog does this to show submission and friendliness, after all, there are many bacteria in the dog’s mouth. If constantly licked, problems can easily arise, so the owner should use appropriate methods to stop this behavior.