Licking Your Wounds is Beneficial to your Health

"Langue de chien, langue de médecin," the French say: "A dog's tongue is a doctor's tongue."

It is instinctive to put a paper-cut finger in your mouth.  And dogs do the same with their wounds. 

Dog saliva  is relatively clean and full of enzymes, which promote healing.  The first few licks  help to clean away the debris that might be in the wound, and licking cleans  infectious matter from the outside world.  The bacteria in their mouths isn’t too bad, in fact many of them are  actually helpful.  Licking also stimulates blood flow and some other  healing effects.

Cats, sheep, and other animals also lick their wounds.  If you didn’t have hands- you might do the same!

The benefits of moderate wound licking:

The enzymes in dog saliva help destroy the cell walls of dangerous  bacteria.  Lactoferrin and other antibacterial and anti-viral compounds  can also be found in saliva.

Licking a wound delivers protease inhibitors, and growth factors, which promote wound healing.  Opiorphin is a pain reliever.

Finally, when meeting the skin, nitrate compounds in saliva break  down into Nitric Oxide, inhibiting bacterial growth and promoting  healing.

Too much licking:

A good amount of licking can be helpful for small wounds- but never  after surgery, especially if there have been stitches, dogs are likely  to bite and pull them out. 

Conclusion:  for minor wounds licking helps.  There can be minor risks is the creature licking is sick, but for the most part licking is an instinct that assists.

Source:  Assissi Animal Health blog