Written by Ethan Walker · Reviewed against our Editorial Guidelines · Updated August 17, 2026

Lick Mats for Dogs: Benefits & How to Use Them

A lick mat for dogs is a flat, textured silicone mat you smear with soft food, turning a few spoonfuls into several minutes of slow, repetitive licking that many dogs find calming. That's why lick mats have become a go-to for anxious dogs, bath-time distraction, and beating boredom.

Here's how lick mats work, their real benefits, what to put on one, how to keep it clean, and where a snuffle mat fits in if you'd rather work your dog's nose than their tongue.

What is a lick mat?

A lick mat is a flexible mat — usually silicone — with a raised, textured surface. You spread something soft and tasty across it (think wet food, plain yogurt, or dog-safe peanut butter), and your dog has to lick the food out of the ridges. That turns a few spoonfuls into several minutes of focused, soothing work.

The magic is in the licking itself. Repetitive licking is a self-soothing behavior for dogs, so a lick mat isn't just a snack — it's a calming activity.

Benefits of lick mats for dogs

Lick mats calm anxious dogs, distract during grooming, slow down eating, and relieve boredom — the specific reasons owners reach for one:

• Calming and stress relief. The repetitive licking motion helps many dogs settle. Useful before or during stressful moments.
• Distraction during grooming, baths, or nail trims. Stick a loaded mat to the wall or tub and your dog focuses on licking instead of squirming.
• Slower eating. Spreading food thin makes your dog work for it, pacing the meal.
• Boredom busting. A few minutes of licking is genuinely engaging and mentally tiring.
• Crate rest and recovery. A calm, low-energy activity for dogs on restricted movement.

These are general benefits many owners report — every dog is different, and a lick mat isn't a treatment for genuine anxiety disorders. If your dog struggles with real anxiety, that's worth discussing with your vet or a behaviorist.

What to put on a lick mat

Soft, spreadable, dog-safe foods work best:

• Wet dog food or mashed raw
• Plain, unsweetened yogurt (in moderation, if your dog tolerates dairy)
• Dog-safe peanut butter — crucially, xylitol-free, as xylitol is toxic to dogs
• Mashed banana, pumpkin puree, or wet-food + kibble mix
• A thin smear of wet food, frozen for a longer-lasting challenge

Keep it to dog-safe ingredients, watch portions so you don't overfeed, and count what goes on the mat as part of your dog's daily food. Avoid anything with xylitol, chocolate, grapes, onion, or excessive salt.

How to use a lick mat

1. Spread a thin layer of soft food across the ridges — thin makes it last longer.
2. Stick it down if it has suction feet (great on a wall or the side of the tub for bath time).
3. Let your dog lick. A few minutes is plenty for most dogs.
4. Supervise, especially with enthusiastic chewers — a lick mat is for licking, not chewing, and any dog that tries to bite chunks off should be supervised or switched to a sturdier option.
5. Freeze it for hot days or a longer session.

Lick mat vs snuffle mat: which enrichment is right?

Here's where we'll be straight with you: we don't sell a lick mat (yet). What we do offer — and love as an everyday enrichment tool — is a snuffle mat, which works your dog's nose instead of their tongue.

• A lick mat uses soft food and repetitive licking. Best for calming, grooming distraction, and quick settle sessions.
• A snuffle mat hides dry kibble in fleece folds so your dog sniffs and forages it out. Best for foraging enrichment, burning mental energy, and slowing fast eaters — and it's machine-washable, which is a big plus over sticky lick-mat cleanup.

Many owners happily use both: a lick mat for calm-down moments, a snuffle mat for "give me a job to do" energy. If you want an enrichment tool that taps your dog's natural foraging instinct and tosses in the wash, the snuffle mat is the one we'd recommend. For more ideas, our dog enrichment ideas guide rounds up the full toolkit.

👉 See the Snuffle Mat for Dogs →

How to clean a lick mat

Lick mats need regular cleaning because soft food gets into every groove:

1. Rinse right after use before the food dries.
2. Wash with warm soapy water or run silicone mats through the dishwasher.
3. Dry fully before the next use.

Sticky, spreadable food makes lick mats fiddlier to clean than a snuffle mat you can simply machine-wash — worth knowing before you choose.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are lick mats good for? Lick mats calm and distract dogs through repetitive licking. They're popular for stress relief, bath and grooming distraction, slowing eating, beating boredom, and crate rest. They're a general enrichment tool, not a treatment for anxiety disorders.

What can I put on a lick mat for my dog? Soft, dog-safe foods like wet food, plain yogurt, xylitol-free peanut butter, mashed banana, or pumpkin puree. Avoid xylitol, chocolate, grapes, onion, and too much salt, and count it toward your dog's daily food.

Are lick mats safe for dogs? Generally yes, when used for licking and supervised. Enthusiastic chewers can try to bite off pieces, so watch your dog and switch to a sturdier option if they chew. Choose safe ingredients and don't overfeed.

Lick mat or snuffle mat — which is better? They do different jobs. A lick mat uses soft food and licking for calming and distraction. A snuffle mat hides dry food in fleece for foraging enrichment and slowing eating, and it's machine-washable. Many owners use both.