SHOULD YOU KISS YOUR DOG???

Well, ok, so now I have to comment.

Hoda and Kathie Lee were bantering about it last week, so I guess that means I have to weigh in on 'the scoop' on doggies, too.

No, not the 'scoop' as in the poop, the 'scoop' as in the kiss....!

Is it unhealthy to kiss your dog on the lips???

Well, here's my not-so-secret, secret...on occassion Louie, the big Berner baby of mine, sometime gets a little tongue lick on my lips as we are talking in the morning. ( He even did it on TV last week while we were appearing on INDY STYLE on WISH-TV....caught on tape!) It happens...and I have never gotten sick from him, and maybe more importantly he hasn't gotten sick from me..So, let's investigate this mouth-to-mouth controversy amongst the canine and human species.

I did some investigating on the internet, and discovered both dog and people mouths have a LOT of germs. They are hot, and moist places, where bacteria thrive. BUT most germs are SPECIES SPECIFIC ! So germs from Louie's mouth are not going to find a welcoming home in my mouth, and vice versa.

Just to make sure your doggie's mouth is as clean as can be...remove fecal material from the yard, don't let him raid the trashcan to eat rancid food, give him a dental bone to cut down on tartar, and make sure he has his shots !! (And make sure you have yours, too!!!)

Speaking of spit...did you ever notice that a wound on your beloved pooch heals faster when they lick it? Well, mainly its just because licking it cleans the area from dead cells and dirt, just like washing cleans our boo-boos! It's not supernatual, just sensible.

So, there's the low down on the doggie kiss. Go ahead and kiss your dog...you are more likely to get into germy trouble kissing another human. And might I add, I have dated a few dawgs who I wished I'd never kissed...but that's another story.....!!