200+ Quotes About the Love of a Dog

Quotes about the love of a dog comprise passion citations by famous celebrities.

Throughout human history, the bond between a man and his dog has been repeatedly glorified by poets and writers. Similarly, movies highlighting the same theme regularly become critical and commercial hits.

Words are not enough to show how valuable these tail-wagging creatures are to us. Nonetheless, we've prepared a library of famous quotes that accurately highlight the love and bond between a dog owner and their pet.

1. "The dog is a gentleman. I hope to go to his heaven, not man's." - Mark Twain

2. "Over the years I have felt the truest, purest love—the love of God, really, I imagine that's what God's love feels like—is the love that comes from your dog." - Oprah Winfrey

3. "All his life he tried to be a good person. Many times, however, he failed. For, after all, he was only human. He wasn't a dog." - Charles M Schulz

4. "You can usually tell that a man is good if he has a dog who loves him." - W Bruce Cameron

5. "The dog has been esteemed and loved by all the people on earth, and he has deserved this affection for he renders services that have made him man's best friend." - Charles Bukowski

6. "If there are no dogs in heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." - Will Rogers

7. "Such short little lives our pets have to spend with us, and they spend most of it waiting for us to come home each day." - John Grogan

8. "There is no faith which has never yet been broken, except that of a truly faithful dog." - Konrad Lorenz

9. "Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminished." - Dean Koontz

10. "I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me, they are the role model for being alive." - Gilda Radner

11. "No matter how little money and how few possessions you own, having a dog makes you rich." - Louis Sabin

12. “Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like; afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way.” - Caroline Knapp

13. “Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.” - Roger Caras

14. "My fashion philosophy is, if you're not covered in dog hair, your life is empty." - Elayne Boosler

15. "If your dog doesn't like someone, you probably shouldn't either." - Jack Canfield

16. "No matter how you're feeling, a little dog gonna love you." - Waka Flocka Flame

17. "Like many other much-loved humans, they believed that they owned their dogs, instead of realizing that their dogs owned them." - Dodie Smith

18. “My favorite type of pet has always been a dog. They’re loyal, and kind, and offer endless affection. My friend Eric says, ‘The more people I meet, the more I like my dog.’ Funny thought.” – Brendon Urie

19. "A well-trained dog will make no attempt to share your lunch. He will just make you feel so guilty that you cannot enjoy it." - Helen Thomson

20. "Petting, scratching, and cuddling a dog could be as soothing to the mind and heart as deep meditation and almost as good for the soul as prayer." - Dean Koontz

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21. "No one appreciates the very special genius of your conversation as the dog does." - Christopher Morley

22. “Dog is God spelled backward.” - Duane Chapman

23. “Scratch a dog and you’ll find a permanent job.” - Franklin P Jones

24. "All dogs go to heaven because dogs are naturally good and loyal and kind." - Melba Moore

25. "Dogs never talk about themselves but listen to you while you talk about yourself, and keep up an appearance of being interested in the conversation." - Jerome K Jerome

26. “There’s a saying. If you want someone to love you forever, buy a dog, feed it and keep it around.” - Dick Dale

27. "My idea of absolute happiness is to be in bed on a rainy day with my blankie, my cat, and my dog." - Anne Lamott

28. “Animals have come to mean so much in our lives. We live in a fragmented and disconnected culture. Politics are ugly, religion is struggling, technology is stressful, and the economy is unfortunate. What’s one thing that we have in our lives that we can depend on? A dog loving us unconditionally, every day, very faithfully.” - Jon Katz

29. "I suppose there's a time in practically every young boy's life when he's affected by that wonderful disease of puppy love. I don't mean the kind a boy has for the pretty little girl that lives down the road. I mean the real kind, the kind that has four small feet and a wiggly tail, and sharp little teeth that can gnaw on a boy's finger; the kind a boy can romp and play with, even eat and sleep with." - Wilson Rawls

30. “The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth will ever be.” - Konrad Lorenz

31. "Dogs are humanizing. They remind us we have an obligation and responsibility to preserve and nurture and care for all life." - James Cromwell

32. “If you don’t own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life.” - Roger A Caras

33. “I like dogs. You always know what a dog is thinking. It has four moods. Happy, sad, cross, and concentrating. Also, dogs are faithful and they do not tell lies because they cannot talk.” - Mark Haddon

34. “Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.” - Roger A Caras

35. "There is nothing truer in this world than the love of a good dog." - Mira Grant

36. “You know, a dog can snap you out of any kind of bad mood that you’re in faster than you can think of.” – Jill Abramson

37. “A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself.” - Josh Billings

38. "Dogs want to know every last thing about you. They take in the smell of you, they know from the next room, asleep, when a mood settles over you. The difference is there's not an end to it." - Amy Hempel

39. "If it wasn’t for puppies, some people would never go for a walk." - Anonymous

40. "The first dog is the dog who gives you so much that the first dog is often the reason for the second dog." - Anonymous

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41. “The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself too.” - Samuel Butler

42. “If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and man.” - Mark Twain

43. "The most affectionate creature in the world is a wet dog." - Charles Dickens

44. “It’s impossible to keep a straight face in the presence of one or more puppies.” - Anonymous

45. "Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike people, who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix love and hate." - Sigmund Freud

46. “The love of a dog is a pure thing. He gives you a trust which is total. You must not betray it.” - Michel Houellebecq

47. “A dog will teach you unconditional love. If you can have that in your life, things won’t be too bad.” - Robert Wagner

48. “The poor dog, in life the firmest friend. The first to welcome, foremost to defend.” - Lord Byron

49. If there are junk yards in hell, love is the dog that guards the gates." - Charles Bukowski

50. "Dogs are better than human beings because they know but do not tell." - Emily Dickinson

51. "A dog is the only thing that can mend a crack in your broken heart." – Judy Desmond

52. "If dogs could talk, perhaps we would find it as hard to get along with them as people." - Capek

53. "I have caught more ills from people sneezing over me and giving me virus infections than from kissing dogs." - Barbara Woodhouse

54. “When you adopt a dog, you have a lot of very good days and one very bad day.” - W Bruce Cameron

55. “Dogs die. But dogs live, too. Right up until they die, they live. They live brave, beautiful lives. They protect their families. And love us, and make our lives a little brighter, and they don’t waste time being afraid of tomorrow.” - Dan Gemeinhart

56. “The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.” - Andy Rooney

57. "If I could be half the person my dog is, I'd be twice the human I am." - Charles Yu

58. It is amazing how much love and laughter dogs bring into our lives and even how much closer we become with each other because of them." - John Grogan

59. "The truth is that it's just really hard for me to get to sleep without a dog in my bedroom." - Jimmy Stewart

60. A boy can learn a lot from a dog: obedience, loyalty, and the importance of turning around three times before lying down." - Robert Benchley

61. "Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them and filling an emptiness we didn't even know we had." - Thom Jones

62. “You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us.” - Robert Louis Stevenson

63. “Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.” - Anonymous

64. "It's tough to stay married. My wife kisses the dog on the lips, yet she won't drink from my glass." - Rodney Dangerfield

65. "Why does watching a dog be a dog fill one with happiness?" - Jonathan Safran Foer

66. "It's hard not to immediately fall in love with a dog who has a good sense of humor." - Kate DiCamillo

67. "The dog is the perfect portrait subject. He doesn't pose. He isn't aware of the camera." - Patrick Demarchelier

68. "Dogs never bite me. Just humans." - Marilyn Monroe

69. "Everybody should have a shelter dog. It's good for the soul." - Paul Shaffer

70. "Dogs leave pawprints on our hearts." - Anonymous

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71. “It’s just the most amazing thing to love a dog, isn’t it? It makes our relationships with people seem as boring as a bowl of oatmeal.” - John Grogan

72. "I once decided not to date a guy because he wasn't excited to meet my dog. I mean, this was like not wanting to meet my mother." - Bonnie Schacter

73. "Did you ever walk into a room and forget why you walked in? I think that is how dogs spend their lives." - Sue Murphy

74. "A dog is a bond between strangers." - John Steinbeck

75. “If you have a dog, you will most likely outlive it; to get a dog is to open yourself to profound joy and, prospectively, to equally profound sadness.” - Marjorie Garber

76. "Does not the gratitude of the dog put to shame any man who is ungrateful to his benefactors?" - Saint Basil

77. “My little dog – a heartbeat at my feet.” - Edith Wharton

78. “People have been asking me if I was going to have kids, and I had puppies instead.” - Kate Jackson

79. "Happiness is a warm puppy." - Charles M Schulz

80. "What do dogs do on their day off? Can’t lie around, that’s their job." - George Carlin

81. "Dogs are great. Bad dogs, if you can really call them that, are perhaps the greatest of all." - John Grogan

82. "Nobody can fully understand the meaning of love unless he's owned a dog. A dog can show you more honest affection with a flick of his tail than a man can gather through a lifetime of handshakes." - Gene Hill

83. "I asked a kid, 'What is love?' He answered, 'Love is when a puppy licks your face,' I laughed before he added, 'even when you left him alone all day.' " - Anonymous

84. "Some of my best leading men have been dogs and horses." - Elizabeth Taylor

85. "In the whole history of the world, there is but one thing that money can not buy … to wit—the wag of a dog's tail." - Josh Billings

86. "Even the tiniest Poodle or Chihuahua is still a wolf at heart." - Dorothy Hinshaw

87. "Ever consider what our dogs must think of us? I mean, here we come back from a grocery store with the most amazing haul, chicken, pork, half a cow. They must think we're the greatest hunters on earth!" - Anne Tyler

88. "I have found that when you are deeply troubled, there are things you get from the silent devoted companionship of a dog that you can get from no other source." - Doris Day

89. "For me, a house or an apartment becomes a home when you add one set of four legs, a happy tail, and that indescribable measure of love that we call a dog." - Roger Caras

90. "For a man living alone, dogs are almost more important than human beings." - Richard Katz

91. "The greatest fear dogs know is the fear that you will not come back when you go out the door without them." - Stanley Coren

92. "Dogs are how people would be if the important stuff is all that mattered to us." - Ashly Lorenzana

93. "Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends." - Alexander Pope

94. "The old saw about old dogs and new tricks only applies to certain people." - Daniel Pinkwater

95. "Dogs don't rationalize. They don't hold anything against a person. They don't see the outside of a human but the inside of a human." - Cesar Millan

96. "In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn’t merely try to train him to be semi-human. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog." - Edward Hoagland

97. "If you eliminate smoking and gambling, you will be amazed to find that almost all an Englishman's pleasures can be, and mostly are, shared by his dog." - George Bernard Shaw

98. "Love—that which biologists, nervous about being misunderstood, call 'attachment'—fuels the bond between dog and master or mistress." - John Bradshaw

99. "It seems to me that the good Lord in his infinite wisdom gave us three things to make life bearable—hope, jokes, and dogs. But the greatest of these was dogs." - Robyn Davidson

100. "Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring—it was peace." - Milan Kundera

101. "I'm a lot less cranky when it's just me and my dog." - Bob Peterson

102. "No animal I know of can consistently be more of a friend and companion than a dog." - Stanley Leinwall

103. "When an 85-pound mammal licks your tears away and then tries to sit on your lap, it's hard to feel sad." - Kristan Higgins

104. "The dog was created especially for children. He is the god of frolic." - Henry Ward

105. "My dog thinks I’m a catch." - Anonymous

106. "Dogs teach us a very important lesson in life: The mail man is not to be trusted." - Sian Fiord

107. "Don’t accept your dog’s admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful." - Ann Landers

108. "A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog when you are just as hungry as the dog." - Jack London

109. "There are times when even the best manager is like the little boy with the big dog—waiting to see where the dog wants to go so he can take him there." - Lee Iacocca

110. "Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." - Groucho Marx

111. "The one absolutely unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts him, the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous, is his dog." - George Graham Vest

112. "Bliss is the result of a silent conversation between me and my dog." - Anonymous

113. "...people have been trying to understand dogs ever since the beginning of time. One never knows what they'll do. You can read every day where a dog saved the life of a drowning child, or lay down his life for his master. Some people call this loyalty. I don't. I may be wrong, but I call it love—the deepest kind of love." - Wilson Rawls

114. "Home is where the dog runs to greet you." - Anonymous

115. "My main characters are the most sunny, happy, optimistic, loving creatures on the face of the Earth. I couldn't be happier that's where I start. I can put as many flawed people in the dog's world as I like, but the dog doesn't care. Dog doesn't judge; dog doesn't dislike. Dog loves. That's not so bad." - W Bruce Cameron

116. "If you think dogs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then give him only two of them." - Phil Pastoret

117. "When the dog looks at you, the dog is not thinking what kind of a person you are. The dog is not judging you." - Eckhart Tolle

118. "Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen." - Orhan Pamuk

119. “Dogs are lonesome creatures who needs a someone that will love him for eternity, Once they've found the one, He will protect it, believing that he is the only one who could accept him.” - Ammiel Josiah Monterde

120. "Dogs have boundless enthusiasm but no sense of shame. I should have a dog as a life coach." - Moby

121. "The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs." - Charles De Gaulle

122. "I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it." - Abraham Lincoln

123. "The world would be a nicer place if everyone had the ability to love as unconditionally as a dog." - MK Clinton

124. "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face." - Ben Williams

125. "I've seen a look in dogs' eyes, a quickly vanishing look of amazed contempt, and I am convinced that dogs think humans are nuts." - John Steinbeck

126. "Did you know that there are over 300 words for love in canine?" - Gabriel Zevin

127. "Owners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods." - Christopher Hitchens

128. "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is, in fact, the most precious and valuable possession of mankind." - Theodorus Gaza

129. "Keep calm and pet a dog." - Anonymous

130. "When the Man woke up, he said, 'What is Wild Dog doing here?' And the Woman said, 'His name is not Wild Dog any more, but the First Friend because he will be our friend for always and always and always.'" - Rudyard Kipling

131. "To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs." - Aldous Huxley

132. "The best therapist has fur and four legs." - Anonymous

133. "The best way to get a puppy is to beg for a baby brother—and they'll settle for a puppy every time." - Winston Pendleton

134. "Old dogs, like old shoes, are comfortable. They might be a bit out of shape and a little worn around the edges, but they fit well." - Bonnie Wilcox

135.  "There are no bad days when you come home to a dog's love." - Anonymous

136. "Until one has loved a dog, a part of one's soul remains unawakened." - Anatole France

137. "There's just something about dogs that makes you feel good. You come home, they're thrilled to see you. They're good for the ego." - Janet Schnellman

138. "Dogs got personality. Personality goes a long way." – Quentin Tarantino

139. "Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turns to fog; but you're never friendless ever if you have a dog." - Anonymous

140. "I just want to be in my sweats, walk my dog, watch TV, and eat pizza." - America Ferrera

141. "When you feel lousy, puppy therapy is indicated." - Sarah Paretsky

142. "The dog has seldom been successful in pulling man up to its level of sagacity, but man has frequently dragged the dog down to his." - James Thurber

143. "Dogs motivate us to play, be affectionate, seek adventure, and be loyal." - Tom Hayden

144. "After years of having a dog, you know him. You know the meaning of his snuffs and grunts and barks. Every twitch of the ears is a question or statement, every wag of the tail is an exclamation." - Robert McCammon

145. "If you want a friend, buy a dog." - Kevin O’Leary

146. "Compassion for dogs is intimately connected with goodness of character; and it may be confidently asserted that he who is cruel to animals cannot be a good man." - Arthur Schopenhauer

147. "Whoever said that diamonds are a girl's best friend never owned a dog." - Anonymous

148. "There are three faithful friends: an old wife, an old dog, and ready money." - Benjamin Franklin

149. "Old age means realizing you will never own all the dogs you wanted to." - Joe Gores

150. I am thankful for my dogs because they complete my family." - Anonymous

151. "Dogs and angels are not very far apart." - Charles Bukowski

152. "Folk will know how large your soul is, by the way you treat a dog." - Charles F Doran

153. "If I have any beliefs about immortality, it is that certain dogs I have known will go to heaven, and very, very few persons." - James Thurber

154. "People love dogs. You can never go wrong adding a dog to the story." - Jim Butcher

155. "Be the person your dog thinks you are." - CJ Frick

156. "Dogs are the best example of a being who doesn't need to lie to protect someone's pride." - Ammiel Josiah Monterde

157. "When I look into the eyes of a dog, I do not see an animal. I see a  living being. I see a friend. I feel a soul." - AD Williams

158. "My sunshine doesn't come from the skies. It comes from the love that's in my dog's eyes." - Anonymous

159. "A dog has the soul of a philosopher." - Plato

160. "Man himself cannot express love and humility by external signs so plainly as does a dog when, with drooping ears, hanging lips, flexuous body, and wagging tail, he meets his beloved master." - Charles Darwin

161. "You do not own a dog. You have a dog. And the dog has you." - Chelsea Handler

162. "A dog has one aim in life, to bestow his heart." - JR Ackerley

163. "When your children are teenagers, it's important to have a dog so that someone in the house is happy to see you." - Nora Ephron

164. "The kindness lavished on dogs, if evenly distributed, would establish peace on earth." - William Feather

165. "The kindness one does for one dog may not change the world but it will change the world of that one animal." - Anonymous

166. "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face." - Ben Williams

167. "Ever wonder where you'd end up if you took your dog for a walk and never once pulled back on the leash?" - Robert Breault

168. "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." - Harry S Truman

169. "Not every person knows how to love a dog, but every dog knows how to love a person." - Anonymous

170. "I have found that when you are deeply troubled, there are things you get from the silent devoted companionship of a dog that you can get from no other source." - Doris Day

171. "The only creatures that are evolved enough to convey pure love are dogs and infants." - Johnny Depp

172. "Dogs really are perfect soldiers. They are brave and smart; they can smell through walls, see in the dark, and eat Army rations without complaint." - Susan Orlean

173. "Be prepared. A dog is adorable and noble. A dog is a true and loving friend. A dog is also a hedonist." - Mary Oliver

174. "If the kindest souls were rewarded with the longest lives, dogs would outlive us all." - Anonymous

175. "I'm for the unconditional love of dogs. May we learn the lesson of that love by heart." - Taylor Mali

176. "Intelligent dogs rarely want to please people whom they do not respect." - W.R. Koehler

177. "Who loves me will love my dog also." - Anonymous

178. "A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his." - John Grogan

179. "They say the smart dog obeys but the smarter dog knows when to disobey." - Amy Hempel

180. "When the cat you love becomes a memory, the memory becomes a treasure." - Anonymous

181. "A lot of shelter dogs are mutts like me." - Barack Obama

182. "The dog has got more fun out of man than man has got out of the dog, for the clearly demonstrable reason that man is the more laughable of the two animals." - James Thurber

183. "A dog desires affection more than its dinner. Well—almost." - Charlotte Gray

184. "Fall in love with a dog, and in many ways you enter a new orbit, a universe that features not just new colors but new rituals, new rules, a new way of experiencing attachment." - Caroline Knapp

185. "Dogs are wise. They crawl away into a quiet corner and lick their wounds and do not rejoin the world until they are whole once more." - Agatha Christie

186. " 'I'm not alone,' said the boy. 'I've got a puppy.' " - Jane Thayer

187. "Dogs don't lie. A dog's tail is a strikingly honest window to their souls." - Jim Hillibish

188. "Dogs are reliable, many full of love, true in their affections, predictable in their actions, grateful and loyal. Difficult standards for people to live up to." - Alfred A Montapert

189. "You'll never walk alone because I'll always be with you. Love, your dog." - Anonymous

190. "I really love dogs. They’re like children. They know if you really love them or not. You can’t fool them." - Donna Douglas

191. "The dog lives for the day, the hour, even the moment." - Robert Falcon Scott

192. "Hounds follow those who feed them." - Otton von Bismarck

193. "The dog who meets with a good master is the happier of the two." - Maurice Maeterlinck

194. "I suspect that we cherish dogs because their unblemished souls make us wish—consciously or unconsciously—that we were as innocent as they are, and make us yearn for a place where innocence is universal and where the meanness, the betrayals, and the cruelties of this world are unknown." - Dean Koontz

195. "If you're lucky, a dog will come into your life, steal your heart, and change everything." - Anonymous

196. "Dogs feel very strongly that they should always go with you in the car, in case the need should arise for them to bark violently at nothing, right in your ear." - Dave Barry

197. "It’s difficult to understand why people don’t realize that dogs are gifts to mankind." - Linda Blair

198. "I am among the ranks of millions of people who appreciate the souls of dogs and know they are a gift of pure love and an example of all that is good." - Jennifer Skiff

199. "When I walk my dog, people always ask if we’re twins." - Jarod Kintz

200. "To err is human—to forgive, canine." - Anonymous

201. "A dog reflects the family life. Whoever saw a frisky dog in a gloomy family, or a sad dog in a happy one? Snarling people have snarling dogs, dangerous people have dangerous ones." - Arthur Conan Doyle

202. If you are a dog and your owner suggests that you wear a sweater, suggest that he wear a tail." - Fran Lebowitz

203. "If a dog will not come to you after having looked you in the face, you should go home and examine your conscience." - Woodrow Wilson