List of Famous Dogs and Dog Names

with images, facts, and breeds

including in movies, TV, comics, books, history

Real Life Dogs Famous prior to 1940

Sorted by Earliest Year

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Cerberus
A monstrous multi-headed dog of Greek mythology, often called the "hound of Hades", it guards the gates of the underworld preventing the dead from leaving. (More about Cerberus.)
BREED: Unknown YEARS:

Argos
Odysseus' faithful dog in the Greek epic poem Odyssey by Homer. (More about Argos.)
BREED: Unknown YEARS:

Peritas
Favorite dog of Alexander the Great who accompanied him during his military exploits. (More about Peritas.)
BREED: Unknown YEARS:

Barry
The mountain rescue dog who saved 40 lives at the Great St. Bernard Pass. (More about Barry.)
BREED: St. Bernard YEARS:

Gelert
The dog of legend associated with the village of Beddgelert in Wales made famous in a poem by William Robert Spencer. (More about Gelert. Image shown is a painting by Richard Ansdell.)
BREED: Irish Wolfhound YEARS:

Seaman
The dog that accompanied Lewis and Clark on their expedition across America at the beginning of the 19th century. (Picture by Anne Mainman.)
BREED: Newfoundland YEARS:

Fido
Pet dog of President Abraham Lincoln. The dog was assasinated by a drunk shortly after the death of Lincoln. The president also had a dog named Jip. (More about Fido)
BREED: Unknown YEARS:

Huddersfield Ben
The first Yorkshire Terrier who won many prizes as a show dog and in ratting contests. (More about Hudderfield Ben.)
BREED: Yorkshire Terrier YEARS:

Bobby
The loyal dog of John Gray, also known as Greyfriars Bobby, a dog who became famous in 19th-century Edinburgh for supposedly spending 14 years guarding the grave of his owner until he died himself. (See Greyfriars Bobby.)
BREED: Skye Terrier YEARS:

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Sensation (Another )
Representative dog image for the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. A dog named Don which had won bench championships in England in 1875 and 1876, became the symbolic image for the Kennel Club because of the 1935 steel engraving of “Sensation” by artist J. Wellstood. From 1980-1982, a head study of the dog gained popularity. (More about Sensation.)
BREED: Pointer YEARS:

Bob the Railway Dog (Another )
A dog in the folklore of South Australian Railways in the later part of the 19th century and was known widely to railwaymen of the day. (More about Bob.)
BREED: Collie mix YEARS:

Nipper (Another )
In advertisements for The Gramophone Company, then RCA. (More about Nipper.)
BREED: Terrier mix YEARS:

Owney (Another )
In advertisements for the U.S. Postal Office. (More about Owney.)
BREED: Mixed breed terrier YEARS:

Dash (Another )
Pet of President Benjamin Harrison; the president had a fancy dog house built next to the White House for Dash.
BREED: Collie mixed breed YEARS:

Horand von Grafrath (Another )
The first German Shepherd; developed in Germany by "Captain" Max von Stephanitz. (More about Horand von Grafrath.)
BREED: German Shepherd YEARS:

Phiz (Another )
Pet of Helen Keller, a blind and deaf American author, political activist, and lecturer (June 27, 1880-June 1, 1968.) Later in life Miss Keller had a French Bull Terrier named Kaiser and an Akita named Kenzan-go, the first in the United States.
BREED: Boston Terrier (some say it was a Pit Bull) YEARS:

Lad (Real-life dog )
The author's dog in the movie Lad: A Dog; starring Peter Breck; based on a series of short stories by Albert Terhune about his real-life Rough Collie.
BREED: Rough Collie YEARS:

Blair (Real-life dog )
Director Cecil Hepworth'sfirst dog movie star and who played Rover in the movie Rescued by Rover.
BREED: Collie YEARS:

Jean (Real-life dog )
Dog actor known as the Vitagraph Dog that performed title roles in early silent films. The Vitagraph Studios was the most prolific American film production company in 1907.
BREED: Border Collie YEARS:

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Pete (Real-life dog )
Pet dog of President Theodore Roosevelt who ripped off the French ambassador’s pants. Also the president had a Chesapeake Retriever named Sailor Boy, a Manchester Terrier Black Jack (Jack), a mongrel Skip, and a Pekingese Manchu.
BREED: Bull Terrier YEARS:

Caruso (Real-life dog )
Pet of President Howard Taft, reportedly a small, white dog who was gifted to Helen by famed opera singer Enrico Caruso.
BREED: Mixed breed YEARS:

Togo (Real-life dog )
The lead dog in the famous 1925 Serum Run to Nome, also known as the "Great Race of Mercy." (More about Togo.)
BREED: Siberian Husky YEARS:

Chinook (Real-life dog )
An historic dog, first of the sled dog breed of that name derived from Husky and Mastiff and developed by Arthur Treadwell Walden. He led Byrd's 1929 Antarctic Expedition. The dog breed is also the official state dog of New Hampshire.
BREED: Chinook YEARS:

Strongheart (Real-life dog )
Dog actor in the movies such as White Fang in 1925. (More about Strongheart.)
BREED: German Shepherd YEARS:

Stubby (Real dog )
Robert Conroy's companion in the animated movie Sgt._Stubby:_An_American_Hero; about a stray dog who becomes a hero of the World War I; based on the real life of a dog named Stubby, the 1st dog promoted to the rank of Sergeant in the US Army and most decorated in American history. (More about Stubby.)
BREED: Bull Terrier YEARS:

Bruce (Real dog )
Pet of President Woodrow Wilson. The president also had an Airedale Davie and Geyhound Mountain Boy.
BREED: Bull Terrier YEARS:

Rags (Real dog )
Dog serving with the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I who became the mascot of the U.S. 1st Infantry Division
BREED: Mixed terrier YEARS:

Rin Tin Tin (Real dog )
A frightened pup found by an American soldier in France during World War I and ended up in Los Angeles where he starred in silent films and became a famous dog actor. He was named for a French child's toy. (More about Rin Tin Tin.)
BREED: German Shepherd YEARS:

Balto (Real dog )
The dog who led a team on the final leg of the 1925 serum run to Nome. A statue of Balto sculpted by Frederick Roth was erected in NYC's Central Park on Dec. 17 1925. (More about Balto.)
BREED: Siberian Husky YEARS:

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Brownie (Real dog )
Film star dog in silent films such as Brownie's Little Venus. His fame was linked to child star Baby Peggy.
BREED: Mixed breed YEARS:

Laddie Boy (Real dog )
Pet of President Warren G. Harding. (More about Laddie Boy). Also in the White House was a Bulldog Old Boy
BREED: Airedale Terrier YEARS:

Cameo (Real dog )
Appearing in many early films, she was a dog actor in such films as Penrod and Sam; born as Camisole.
BREED: Unknown YEARS:

Bobbie The Wonder Dog (Real dog )
The dog famous for traveling 2800 milesfrom Indiana to Oreon to return to his owners. (More about Bobbie.)
BREED: Scotch Collie #NAME? YEARS:

Hachiko (2009 movie )
A Japanese dog remembered for his remarkable loyalty to his owner and in the children's book Hachiko: The True Story of a Loyal Dog; written by Pamela S. Turner; and in the movie (2009). (More about Hachiko.)
BREED: Akita YEARS:

Rob Roy (2009 movie )
Pet of President Calvin Coolidge. Also the President had Collie Prudence Prim, Wirehair Fox Terrier Peter Pan and 8 othere dogs.
BREED: Collie White YEARS:

Jim the Wonder Dog (Statue )
A dog alleged to have a variety of remarkable abilities, among them, he seemed to have the ability to guess the sex of an unborn baby. A memorial park in his name is in Marshal, Missouri.
BREED: Llewellin Setter YEARS:

Jo-Fi (Statue )
Pet of Sigmund Freud to whom he was greatly attached as the dog frequently stayed in his office during psychoanalytic sessions.
BREED: Chow Chow YEARS:

King Tut (Statue )
Pet of President Herbert Hoover. While King Tut was Hoover's favorite dog, there were Fox Terriers Big Ben and Sonnie, Scotch Collie Glen), Malamut Yukon, Setter Eaglehurst Gillette, Irish Wolfhound Patrick, German Shepherd Pat, and Elkhound Weejie.
BREED: Belgian Shepherd YEARS:

Bamse (Statue )
The heroic mascot during World War II of the Free Norwegian Forces. (More about Bamse.)
BREED: St. Bernard YEARS:

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Judy (Statue )
Mascot of the Royal Navy in World War II, only dog to be taken as a prisoner of war by the Japanese.... (More about Judy)
BREED: Pointer YEARS:

Just Nuisance (Statue )
Only dog to be enlisted in the Royal Navy, serving at HMS Afrikander, a Royal Navy shore establishment in Simon's Town, South Africa where a statue honors him.
BREED: Great Dane YEARS:

Sinbad (Statue )
The mascot of the U.S. Coast Guard and in the book written by George F. Foley Jr. Sinbad of the Coast Guard. (More about Sinbad.)
BREED: Mixed breed YEARS:

Ace the Wonder Dog (Statue )
Dog actor in the movie The Adventures of Rusty and many others from 1938-1946 including the 1943 serial The Phantom. (More about Ace.)
BREED: German Shepherd YEARS:

only images only info about

The number of Real Life Dogs Famous prior to 1940 is 43

The contents of this page are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license and the GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL).

Also see: Dogs in Comics, Dogs in Movies, Dogs in Books, Dogs On TV, Complete List

First Earliest Date on each page
1.	0600 (Cerberus)
2.	1872 (Sensation)
3.	1907 (Pete)
4.	1919 (Brownie)
5.	1937 (Judy)
Go to last row

Earliest Date (Dog Name)
1.	0600 (Cerberus)
2.	1001 (Argos)
3.	1001 (Peritas)
4.	1800 (Barry)
5.	1800 (Gelert)
6.	1804 (Seaman)
7.	1855 (Fido)
8.	1865 (Huddersfield Ben)
9.	1872 (Bobby)
10.	1872 (Sensation)
11.	1881 (Bob the Railway Dog)
12.	1884 (Nipper)
13.	1888 (Owney)
14.	1889 (Dash)
15.	1895 (Horand von Grafrath)
16.	1900 (Phiz)
17.	1902 (Lad)
18.	1904 (Blair)
19.	1905 (Jean)
20.	1907 (Pete)
21.	1909 (Caruso)
22.	1913 (Togo)
23.	1917 (Chinook)
24.	1917 (Strongheart)
25.	1917 (Stubby)
26.	1918 (Bruce)
27.	1918 (Rags)
28.	1918 (Rin Tin Tin)
29.	1919 (Balto)
30.	1919 (Brownie)
31.	1920 (Laddie Boy)
32.	1922 (Cameo)
33.	1923 (Bobbie The Wonder Dog)
34.	1923 (Hachiko)
35.	1923 (Rob Roy)
36.	1925 (Jim the Wonder Dog)
37.	1926 (Jo-Fi)
38.	1928 (King Tut)
39.	1937 (Bamse)
40.	1937 (Judy)
41.	1937 (Just Nuisance)
42.	1937 (Sinbad)
43.	1938 (Ace the Wonder Dog)