Dog Jowls: How to Clean? Meet with 9 Great Jowls Dog Breeds

The main question is: What are a dog jowls? Dog jowls mean loose flesh of cheek and throat of the dog. It is a simple matter for a dog. Although some breeds contain floppy and different-looking jowls, all dogs contain these characteristics. However, you have to understand that a jowl face is not only a symbol of a cute wrinkly face but also a necessity for a dog.

The dog jowls protect the whole face from a minor injury. So, if you think that the more jowl, the more protection, it is not a proper concept. Because in jowl rest bacteria or fungus, which are reasons for infections and oral diseases. So, excess dog jowls are not good.

You will notice some breeds that have huge jowls; they specialize in hunting. These breeds use their jowl to take smells from the ground. In swimming and fighting, this huge jowl has been given extra facilities.

Why do Dogs have Jowls?

This is an excellent question. A dog uses her jowl to get additional facilities. There are included some major points of them. Such as-

  1. Picking up Scents: A dog tries to collect scent from the soil by brushing its jowl on the soil after losing it. It is the best practical technique for dogs.
  2. Swimming: In swimming, this jowl is worked as an airbag. A dog breathes efficiently through it. For that reason, dogs feel more comfortable than cats in water.
  3. Protection: A dog feels less pain from jowl injury than different parts of the body. So, the dog doesn’t lose her energy after being injured on jowl.

The big jowl of the dog is responsible for the infection. If proper hygiene is not ensured through cleaning it, a dog must be infected by bacteria and fungus accumulating. We can find three types of jowl diseases. Such as-

  1. Lip Fold Dermatitis – Lip Fold Dermatitis disease appears normally around the wrinkly jowl of a dog’s mouth. Bacteria infection is responsible for it. Some symptoms ensure of this disease. Such as-
    • Red Skin
    • Inflamed Skin
    • Bad Odor
    • Feeling Pain
  2. Oral Papillomavirus – Through the Oral Papillomavirus disease, a tumor is found in the dog’s jowl, tongue, gum, throat, etc. After it dog feels pain and spreads a bad odor from the affected area also. The dangerous point is that it is a contagious disease.
  3. Swollen Red – When a dog is affected by Swollen Red, the dog’s face swells. Additionally, may present allergies, abscesses, dental problems, etc. Big jowls must be responsible for it.

If a dog is infected above disease, you must contact an experienced veterinarian as soon as possible for a suitable step without delay. Otherwise, your pet may lead to serious end. Sometimes, these diseases take away skin cancer. We never want to make such a decision about your dog like dog euthanization. So, keep your dog clean about the dog jowls.

How to Clean a Dogs Jowls?

To keep away from infection, cleaning the dog jowl is essential for you. Although touching and grabbing around the mouth of a dog is painful for a dog, you should do it through desensitization.

  • Use Trick – You can start it by offering some yummy treats. Remember, one treat only for one face touch. This way, you can do it repeatedly. Don’t complete this process at once. You should complete the whole process in several days. All things depend on your dog and the dog’s mode. So, you have to become a gentle and patient owner.
  • Cleaning Process – At first arrange clean, germ-free & soft cloth, pet dental spray. After dipping the cloth in warm water, wipe around the jowl area with it. Be careful, don’t miss the instruction reading before pet dental spay using. This way, you can do the job perfectly.

Why Do Dogs Lick Their Jowls?

Dog lick their jowls. But why do dogs lick their jowls, there are some specific reasons here. Such as-

Janice K. F. Lloyd is a professor at the College of Public Health, Medicine, and Veterinary Science, at James Cook University, Australia. He said…

Dogs lick jowls when they feel negative emotions such as nervousness, anxiety, or stress, they lick jowls.

  • Sometimes dog licks the face when that dog suffers from dental problems.
  • Jowl’s dog licking may be a body language by which shares his feelings toward others.
  • Keeping faces dry, dogs lick their nose or jowls.
  • When a dog dehydrates, he licks his jowl’s nose. So, we can say it is normal behavior.

Heaviest Jowls Dog Breeds

For a big jowl and drooling, some types of dog breeds are very popular worldwide. Dog slobber is a common thing in these types of breeds. If you don’t like dog slobber, you can avoid these dog breeds. However, let’s know who contains big jowls along with knowing how dogs use the jowls practically. Such as-

Mastiff, Hound, Newfoundland dogs
Mastiff, Hound, and Newfoundland Dogs
  1. MASTIFFS – There are different types of Mastiffs. For example, English Mastiff, Neopolitan Mastiff, Bull Mastiff, and Dogue De Bordeaux are included. They are very common for their large dog jowl faces and a massive amount of drool production.
  2. HOUNDS – The Bassett Hound and the Blood Hound are the two types of breeds of the Hound Dog. They use their large jowl to collect scent from the ground to the nose. So, they are well known for their scent and nose. This type of dog has the highest sense of smell.
  3. NEWFOUNDLAND – Newfoundland dogs are also called rescue and water dogs. They are either brown, black, grey, or black N white. The Dominion of Newfoundland, which was the part of Canada is the origin of this dog. Their large jowls are used for breathing in the water while swimming.
  4. THE BOXER – Do you know? The Boxer dogs are above average. Sized jowls. In fighting, this jowl extremely assists them. No wonder they are called Boxers for perfect fighting. It has two breeds one German Boxer and another Deutscher Boxer. Germany is the origin of these dogs.
  5. GREAT DANE – The origin of the Great Dane in Germany. Apollo of dogs is a common nickname for it. Its other names are Deutsche Dogge, German Mastiff, and German Boarhound. They borrowed their big jowls from Mastiff as antecedents. It is the largest breed in the world.
  6. BULLDOGS – The Bulldog originated in England. So they are also called English Bulldogs or British Bulldogs. The bulldog is the national animal of the United Kingdom. They are specialized in breeding baiting dogs. These dogs with jowls protect the jaw and face.
  7. CHOW CHOW – The origin of Chow Chow is in northern China. These kinds of breeds look like dense fur and droopy large jowl. You are bound to be fascinated by its beauty. If we notice it on the neck, we can see a lion-like meme. For this special feature, it is famous for dog lovers.
  8. SAINT BENARD – The origin of Saint Bernard in Switzerland, its other names are St. Bernhardog, St. Bernhardshund, Bernhardiner, and Alpine Spaniel. It is another formidable water dog. Big jowls assist them in breathing in swimming. They produce many drools in sniffing the ground, excited, stressed, drinking water, etc.
  9. SHAR-PEI – The Shar-Pei dog originated from southern China. Cantonese Shar-Pei and Chinese fighting dog are other names for it. Traditionally, they are known as a watchdog and property guardian. It is famous for its deep wrinkles that appear all over its body. It is also called the fighting dog.

Final Assumption

We can say that dog jowls are pretty common features, although some breeds of dogs show it differently. Dogs with large jowls look different when they are sleeping in different positions. And when they run, these dog jowls can satisfy your eyes. But if you notice any abnormal behaviors, you should contact your vet.


Why do dog jowls smell?

They can do it genetically. Well, it is quite natural that after the first generation of dogs, which happens to have huge jowls, their ancestor who was added might have their jowls added too. The skin of many dogs has a jowl configuration that hangs, and it is more common when the dog also gains excess body fat or is overweight.

Are jowls hereditary?

Dogs have jowls for a functional purpose. Jowls, which is the name of floppy skin around the bottom jaw, have many uses, including scent detection, thermoregulation, and the ability to manipulate food when eating.

Why does my dog have jowls?

Jowls are in some sense functional for a dog. The jowls (loose folds of skin beneath the jaw) have uses in scent detection, cooling, and assisting the animal to grip with its mouth during eating.

What are dogs’ droopy lips called?

Those droopy lips on dogs are often called their flews. Flews are the loose skin hanging on the upper and lower lips of certain dog breeds.

What dog breed has the biggest jowls?

The Bloodhound has the habitually cited largest and most pendulous jowls of any breed of dog. But then wrinkles develop on their loose skin and the depth of their flies becomes more pronounced, which is because they have an ultra-acute sense of smell.


  • Minimizing Stress for Patients in the Veterinary Hospital: Why It Is Important and What Can Be Done About It, by Janice K. F. Lloyd, Apr 13th, 2017
  • Dog Jowls, Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia

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