We love our dogs, and they love us right back. The only difference is that dogs can’t put their love into words. Sure, there are a few that have learned to sound out a growly “rye ruv roo” – but let’s be honest, they’re doing it for the treats.
Stupid pet tricks notwithstanding, humans do all the talking in this relationship. And occasionally, humans have had profound things to say about the relationship. In fact, some of history’s greatest minds have reflected on the special bond between humans and dogs.
Of course, no one quote could encompass everything dogs mean to us. That’s why the following list includes more than two dozen dog quotes about love and loyalty.
“The better I get to know men, the more I find myself loving dogs.” – Charles De Gaulle
“Happiness is a warm puppy.” – Charles Shultz
“No matter how little money and how few possessions you own, having a dog makes you rich.” – Louis Sabin
“Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole.” – Roger Caras
“There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face.” – Ben Williams
“A dog will teach you unconditional love. If you can have that in your life, things won’t be too bad.” – Robert Wagner
“No one can fully understand the meaning of love unless he’s owned a dog.” – Gene Hill
“My little dog – a heartbeat at my feet.” – Edith Wharton
“The greatest 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
“The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.” – Andy Rooney
“To his dog, every man is Napoleon; hence the constant popularity of dogs.” – Aldous Huxley
“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
“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
“To err is human – to forgive, canine.” – Unknown
“Life is a series of dogs.” – George Carlin
“I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me, they are the role model for being alive.” – Gilda Radner
“The bond with a dog is as lasting as the ties of this Earth can ever be.” – Konrad Lorenz
“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
“Money will buy you a fine dog, but only love can make it wag its tail.” – Richard Elliott Friedman
“Dogs are great. Bad dogs, if you can really call them that, are perhaps the greatest of them all.” – John Grogan
“The dog was created specially for children. He is the god of frolic.” – Henry Ward Beecher
“The poor dog, in life the firmest friend. The first to welcome, foremost to defend.” – Lord Byron
“Not Carnegie, Vanderbilt, and Astor together could have raised money enough to buy a quarter share in my little dog.” – Ernest Thompson Seton
“Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one, is a life diminished.” – Dean Koontz
“Does not the gratitude of the dog put to shame any man who is ungrateful to his benefactors?” – Saint Basil