Dogs | Accessories

Best Lick Mats for Dogs in Australia: Our Top Picks

If your dog inhales dinner in ten seconds flat, loses the plot at bath time, or paces the house through every summer storm, a lick mat is one of the cheapest fixes worth trying. It's a simple pad, usually food-grade rubber or silicone, with a textured surface — you smear something soft across it, and the slow, repetitive licking it takes to clean the mat off has a real settling effect. The licking itself is the point, not the snack. Vets and behaviourists reach for them for slow feeding, calm and everyday enrichment, and the RSPCA describes enrichment like this as essential to a dog's mental and physical health, and a real part of keeping them calm and settled.

Best Overall

4.7

LickiMat Variety 3-Pack for Dogs

Three textures in one pack
Flat mats roll up for storage

No suction cups to grip

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Best for Slow Feeding

4.5

LickiMat Wobble

Wobbling action draws a meal out
Deep bowl for wet and raw food

Bulkier to store

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Best for Bath Time

4.0

Honomastry Suction Lick Mat

Sticks to walls and tiles
Packs flat for travel

Suction needs a smooth surface

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Best for Long Sessions

4.4

LickiMat Yoggie Pot

Deep pot for frozen fillings
Dishwasher, freezer and microwave safe

Fiddlier to fill and clean

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By Chloe • Updated October 2026 • 🕒 11 min read

How we review →

The mats all look nearly identical in a listing, but they don't behave the same. Surface texture, how well the suction or base holds, whether it survives a determined chewer, and how easily it cleans up are what separate a mat your dog uses daily from a slow feeder that a fast eater empties in seconds. Here's what matters, then our four picks.

What to look for in a dog lick mat

Five things worth weighing before you buy, so the mat matches your dog and the job. Swipe through all five.

Surface texture

Fine grooves suit gentle licking and calm, while deep wells and raised nubs hold more food and take longer to clear. The busier the pattern, the more time and focus a mat buys you, so match it to the job you have in mind.

Suction or weight

Flat mats need suction cups or a non-slip back, or a dog just pushes them around the room until they lose interest. Bowl-style mats use a weighted base instead, which copes far better with smooth tiles and floorboards.

Chew resistance

Every mat here is built for licking, and none of them will stand up to chewing. A dog that gnaws needs the reinforced Tuff range, which adds polypropylene to the rubber. If yours works at the edges instead of the surface, buy for that first, and don't leave any mat down unsupervised.

Easy cleaning

A mat that's a pain to clean quietly stops getting used and ends up at the back of a drawer. Check the maker's instructions before you assume: LickiMat lists its Classic mats as hand wash only, while the Yoggie Pot and the Tuff range go in the dishwasher, and deep moulded grooves need a brush either way.

Freezer-friendly

Freezing a loaded mat stretches a short licking session into a much longer one, which is where the real value sits. Flexible silicone and rubber handle the freezer without cracking, and it's the cheapest way there is to draw a session out.

At a glance

The four picks side by side on texture, format and price, with the short version of our verdict on each.

Rank	Product	Best for	Key feature	Price guide	Check price
Best Overall	LickiMat Variety 3-Pack for Dogs	Owners still learning what their dog likes	Three surface textures for calm, feeding and play.	$	Check price
Best for Slow Feeding	LickiMat Wobble	Fast eaters, small and medium dogs	Wobbling rubber bowl that makes a meal last.	$$	Check price
Best for Bath Time	Honomastry Suction Lick Mat	Bath, grooming and nail-trim distraction	Suction cups anchor it to a wall or the bath.	$	Check price
Best for Long Sessions	LickiMat Yoggie Pot	Long, frozen enrichment sessions	Deep rubber pot for thick, freezable fillings.	$$	Check price

Our picks in detail

What we rate, what to watch for, and the dog each one really suits.

Best Overall: LickiMat Variety 3-Pack for Dogs

Bottom line — the smartest starting point for most dogs, with three textures so you learn which one yours prefers.

This pack covers the three jobs a lick mat gets bought for in one go: the Soother's fine grooved surface for calm, the Buddy's deeper wells for slow feeding, and the Playdate's raised nubs for a longer, busier session. All three are food-grade TPR — a soft, food-safe rubber — flexible enough to roll up and tuck in a drawer, and LickiMat lists them as microwave friendly and hand wash only, so budget for three mats to wash by hand rather than a dishwasher cycle.

Because you get all three shapes, it's the easiest way to find out what your dog settles with, without gambling on one design. The trade-off is that these are flat mats with no suction cups, so a determined dog can flip or drag one across the kitchen — fine on carpet or inside a crate, less so on smooth tiles. LickiMat is blunt that the Classic range is not a chew toy, so a dog that treats everything as something to gnaw needs the reinforced Tuff range instead. For the classic routine — smear something soft on, freeze it, hand it over — they're about as good as it gets, and freezing a loaded mat stretches the session well past what a soft smear manages.

What we love	Areas for improvement
Three textures cover calm, feeding and play Food-grade TPR rubber, microwave friendly Flat, flexible mats roll up for storage	No suction, so it slides on tiles Not tough enough for keen chewers Hand wash only, and that's three mats

Best for Slow Feeding: LickiMat Wobble

Bottom line — the pick for a small or medium dog that bolts its food, if you'd rather have a bowl than a flat mat.

The Wobble is a lick mat crossed with a bowl — a deep, rounded natural-rubber dish with a dimpled licking surface moulded into the base and up the sides. The rounded bottom is the point of it: the bowl rocks as your dog works at it, and LickiMat's pitch is that the wobbling adds an extra dimension to the challenge, so a dog can't just park its nose in one spot.

That makes it the natural choice for slow feeding, where you want a dog working for a whole meal instead of bolting a smear of treat. Wet food, softened kibble or a runny topper all settle into the deeper wells and take real effort to clear, which is the whole case for feeding this way — LickiMat pitches it as slowing eating down and cutting the gulping that comes with it. It's a single unit with no cups to lose, and the whole thing is dishwasher-safe, inverted. Two things to weigh up: LickiMat lists it for small and medium dogs, so it isn't the answer for a big dog's dinner, and the moulded grooves need a good scrub or a full cycle once sticky food has dried into them.

What we love	Areas for improvement
Wobbling action draws a meal out Deep bowl suits wet, raw and soaked food One-piece design with no cups to lose	Listed for small and medium dogs only Bulkier to store than a flat mat Moulded grooves need a proper scrub

Best for Bath Time: Honomastry Suction Lick Mat

Bottom line — strong suction cups make this the one to stick on the wall when bath or nail time turns into a wrestle.

This is the simplest design here — a flat square pad backed by suction cups — and it's built around one job: sticking to a smooth surface and staying put. Pressed onto tiles, glass or the side of the bath, it holds firm enough that a distracted dog licking away at treats stops fighting the bath or the brush.

That's a real help for the dogs that hate being groomed, or that turn a nail trim into a battle. The food-grade silicone is dishwasher-safe, and the square gives a decent smear area for its size, so you can spread the topping thin and make it last. Two things are worth weighing up. The suction only grips properly smooth, clean surfaces — press it onto textured tiles or a damp, dusty wall and it'll slide straight down mid-bath. And it's a lighter-duty mat than the moulded LickiMats, so a serious chewer will get through the edges faster. Taken for what it is — a cheap, single-purpose bath and grooming tool — it does that job well, and because it packs completely flat it's easy to throw in a bag for travel or a trip to the groomer.

What we love	Areas for improvement
Strong cups grip smooth surfaces Flat pack suits travel and baths Food-grade silicone, safe in the dishwasher	Suction fails on textured surfaces Lighter-duty than the moulded mats Flat pad holds less than a deep pot

Best for Long Sessions: LickiMat Yoggie Pot

Bottom line — a deep rubber pot built for thick, freezable fillings that keep a determined dog busy far longer than a flat mat.

The Yoggie Pot swaps the flat-mat format for a deep, flexible rubber pot with a heavily textured inside, 9.5cm across and about as tall. It's made for thicker, stickier fillings — yoghurt, mashed banana, wet food, a scoop of something spooned in and frozen — that a dog has to work at from every angle, which stretches a session out well past a quick smear across a flat surface. LickiMat rates it for everything from Chihuahuas to Great Danes, and for wet, raw and soaked food as well as the obvious yoghurt.

Freeze one loaded with something soft and you've got a proper distraction — handy for crate time, a vet-visit wind-down, settling a dog while you eat, or keeping a bored one occupied through a wet afternoon indoors. One thing to be clear about: LickiMat builds chew resistance into its Tuff range only, so this is a pot for licking, always under supervision, and a dedicated gnawer needs the Tuff instead. It's the priciest pick here, and the narrow, deep shape is a little fiddlier to fill and to clean than an open mat, so keep a bottle brush nearby. For a long stretch of quiet per fill, the pot format is the one.

What we love	Areas for improvement
Deep pot holds thick, frozen fillings Takes wet, raw, frozen and soaked food Dishwasher, freezer and microwave safe	Priciest pick in this lineup Narrow shape is fiddlier to fill Overkill for simple slow feeding

FAQ

What can I put on a dog lick mat?

Soft, spreadable, dog-safe foods work best — plain peanut butter with no added sweeteners, mashed banana, natural yoghurt, wet dog food, pumpkin puree, or a little softened kibble mashed with water. Avoid anything containing xylitol (a sweetener that's toxic to dogs), along with onion, chocolate, grapes and heavy salt. For a longer session, spread the topping thin so it works into the texture, press it into the grooves, and freeze the mat for an hour or two first — frozen food takes far more licking to shift than food served soft.

Are lick mats good for dogs with anxiety?

The repetitive licking action is naturally soothing for a lot of dogs, so a loaded mat can help take the edge off stressful moments like thunderstorms, fireworks, being left alone, or a car trip. It helps manage the moment, though; it won't fix what's driving the anxiety on its own. For ongoing separation anxiety or noise phobia, a lick mat works best alongside a proper plan, other calming aids and strategies, and a chat with your vet or a qualified behaviourist.

How do I clean a lick mat?

It depends on the mat, so check the maker's instructions before you assume the dishwasher. Plenty of silicone and rubber mats are top-rack dishwasher-safe — LickiMat's Yoggie Pot and Tuff range among them — but its Classic mats are listed hand wash only. By hand, warm soapy water and a brush or an old toothbrush gets into the texture; rinse it well and let it air-dry fully before the next use. Give it a proper clean every time, because dried-on food and damp grooves are exactly where bacteria and mould like to build up.

Can I leave my dog alone with a lick mat?

Only if your dog tends to lick a mat clean instead of chewing at it, and only with a mat that suits them. Dogs that gnaw at the edges can tear off and swallow pieces of silicone or rubber, which is a choking and gut-blockage risk, so those dogs should only use tougher rubber designs and always under supervision. If you aren't sure which type yours is, sit and watch the first few sessions before you trust them with it unattended, and take it away the moment the chewing starts.

Do vets recommend lick mats?

Enrichment and slow feeding are widely encouraged by vets and animal-welfare groups as part of a dog's normal daily routine. The RSPCA recommends low-cost food-based enrichment — including feeders that make a dog work for its food and slow fast eaters down — as a simple way to prevent boredom and stress-related behaviour. A lick mat is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to do exactly that at home.

Final thoughts

I'll admit I was sceptical about lick mats until Bruce, my golden, started treating storm season like the end of the world. A mat with a smear of peanut butter won't cure real anxiety, but those few minutes of steady licking do take the edge off while the worst of the thunder passes, and that's worth a lot at 2am when nobody in the house is sleeping.

My advice is to match the mat to the job, instead of grabbing the cheapest one and hoping. For slow feeding, you want a deep, busy texture and a base that won't skate across the floor. For bath or grooming distraction, strong suction matters more than anything else. And whatever you spread on it, keep it dog-safe — plain peanut butter with no added sweeteners, mashed banana, a little wet food. Start there, freeze it once you've got the hang of it, and you'll quickly work out whether your dog is a licker or a chewer. That one answer tells you almost everything about which mat is worth buying next.