Why is dog saliva so tenaciously slimy?

Maybe it is the food that the dog eats.

The better to slime you with! And the drool strings are even better when they shake their jowels and a big string lands on the TV screen.

Well, nice to know that my gag reflex is working just fine, @chyna!

I think it’s to make us understand that anything they lick becomes theirs, and mere mortals have lost the rights to it forever.

Haha, you guys…but..seriously, there must be some chemical thing going on, you can wash and wash and wash dog dishes and they still feel slimy.

It’s the proteins and enzymes that occur naturally in saliva that give it its “heft”.

They don’t drink enough water.

Dogs typically do a lot of panting to cool off. Cooling takes place as the water in the saliva in the mouth evaporates. As the water in the saliva evaporates, the saliva becomes more concentrated or thicker or as you say so tenaciously slimy.

@gondwanalon That makes sense, thanks!