So many dog owners have been dealing with the constant confusion and sometimes frustration of their dog going into the living room and diving head first into the carpet with the sole reason to rub its face on it. Especially if the carpet has been freshly vacuumed.
This leaves many owners in a state of confusion when it comes to explaining this behavior. Is something maybe bothering the dog, or is it simply an itch that needs to be scratched?
Most common reasons your dog rubs his face on the carpet:
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Allergies in dogs
Allergies can occur to any animal, canines included. This indeed may be a reason why dogs do this, since allergies in dogs tend to commonly manifest as itchy skin, compared to sneezing and a runny nose in humans. They also tend to be most affected on their face and paws, so you can imagine the frustration.
So, if you find that your dog is suffering from an allergy, they will most likely find comfort and relief from rubbing their face on the carpet or ground. Additionally, allergies tend to be seasonal in dogs, and they reach their peak in the summer period. It is also worth paying special attention to your dog’s habits during this period such as excessive licking around the tummy, armpits and paws.
A sign of excessive licking in light color coated dogs is discoloration in that area, specifically in a rusty color. Another sign of allergies can also be a swollen face.
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Ear mites and infections
Even though this reason is not as common as the need to clean itself, your canine friend might be rubbing its head on the rub as a form of relief to the itching and overall irritation that’s commonly caused by mites, allergies and infections.
One of the most common infections that would cause this reaction is an ear infection, so if you notice your dog going at the carpet with its face frequently, check its ears for any discharge and if the ear is red and swollen, then you are definitely dealing with an ear infection and should take your dog to the vet immediately.
On the other hand, ear mites are annoying parasites that nest themselves in a dog’s ear cavity. Those types of infections cause an intense amount of discomfort in the dog’s ear and cause an intense urge to itch. To relieve that discomfort a dog may rub its face on the carpet or against some furniture, so do keep an eye out for mites.
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Marking their territory
This is one of the main reasons why a dog in general rubs his face on the ground or the carpet at home. Marking their area is essential to a dog, and many people overlook this in favor of thinking that the only way that a dog marks its territory is by urinating or defecating.
What happens when a dog rubs its face on the floor is that they leave pheromones on the surface and this signifies that whatever they rubbed their face on belongs to them and them only.
This may be confusing for us humans since we can’t smell the pheromones, but other dogs can and will know whose territory they’re stepping on.
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Eye irritation
Many different factors can affect and irritate a canine’s eyes, for example, something could get stuck in their eyes, which will usually be out as fast as it went in and should not be anything you need to worry about.
However, your dog may have a scratch on its eye, or even an ulcer developing right underneath the cornea in some cases. Both of these cases should be a bit more obvious since your dog will be in pain and may show resistance if you try to inspect its eye close up.
All of the reasons listed above could be plausible enough to prompt your dog to rub its face on the ground to relieve some pain and discomfort, you may also notice that your dog will paw at its eye in some instances or even close it if it’s an infection you are dealing with.
If you suspect that your dog has an eye infection you need to go straight to your vet, before the matter gets worse.
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Rubbing against the carpet just feels good
Last but not least, the reason why your dog is rubs its face on the carpet is that it just feels good. Rubbing its face on different textures and fibers on the carpet will definitely scratch an itch good. So if nothing of the above lines up with your dog’s condition, don’t worry about its face rubbing antics.
You may also be interested : Why Does My Dog Dig at the Carpet ?
