Anime has diverse genres of shows catering to every kind of audience. It can involve complex stories and deep characters, as well as more light-hearted themes. It appeals to many people from all over the world.
For those who love dogs, there are plenty of anime shows with furry friends. Here are 18 Dog anime series and movies where the character of the dog is in the main role.
18. Belle and Sebastian
- Logline: Sebastian search for his mother with a newly found friend Belle.
- Year: 1981
- Genre: Adventure
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Belle and Sebastian is a vintage dog anime that features a little boy named Sebastian and his dog Belle. Sebastian hasn’t seen his mother since birth.
However, he is convinced that his mother is alive and is waiting for him to come. He along with his newly met dog Belle sets on a journey to find his mother.
About Belle
When Sebastian found Belle he couldn’t figure out his name from the dog collar. Finally, he decided to name him Belle.
Belle is a white Pyrenees, a rare dog breed that hails from Europe. Belle cannot talk but is just as expressive as any other character in the anime.
17. Je T’aime
- Logline: In a humanity-free world, a dog looks for a little comfort.
- Year: 2010
- Genre: Sci-fi
- Type: Short-Film
Anime Synopsis
The story revolves around a common Basset Hound who is roaming on the street trying to have fun and find some person to play with but all he sees around is desolation and destruction.
About the dog
Since it’s a short film there are not many details given about the Basset Hound, not even his name.
All that one can grasp from the movie is that the dog is lonely, looking for company and someone to play with.
16. Flanders no Inu: Shiawase no Carbonara
- Logline: Story of an aspiring painter and his chronicles with his loyal pet.
- Year: 1975
- Genre: Slice of Life
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Flanders no Inu is a gentle slice-of-life dog anime about an orphan boy, his friends, and his newly found companion dog.
Nello Tarath is a strong-willed child who hasn’t given hope in life even after losing both his parents. Painting makes him happy and he wishes to make a career out of it.
One day he discovers a dog named Patrasche, brutally beaten by his previous owner. He brings him home, feeds him, and treats his wounds. As time passes by, they get closer, and a strong bond of friendship develops between them.
About Patrasche
Patrasche is a full-grown anime dog. He has three shades of brown fur. He also has a bell attached to his collar. Before meeting Nello he led a very misfortunate life. He was a working dog and was mistreated by his owners. He looked pale and weak.
Nello found him in almost dying stage and bought him home. After Patrasche recovered he became Nello’s best buddy and accompanied him in everyday tasks.
15. The Tibetan Dog
- Logline: A tale of a young Tibetian Shephard.
- Year: 2011
- Genre: Adventure
- Type: Movie
Anime Synopsis
Tibet Inu Monogatari, or as it is known in English, The Tibetain Dog, is a Japanese anime movie made by my favorite anime studios Madhouse. If you are a dog lover and looking for a light-hearted anime on a similar theme, this is the perfect option for you.
The anime focuses on the life of a young Tibetian Shephard named Tenzin. Tenzin lived with his mother until one day she collapsed and died. After this incident, Tenzin decided to live his life as a shepherd and join his father in the Tibetian grasslands.
About Duoji Yongzhi
Unlike other anime dogs mentioned in the list, Douji Yongzhi is a beast. He looks tremendously powerful with his long sparkling furs on his gigantic body.
Tenzin found him batteling against the tibetian dogs. His power doesn’t come as a surprise when you realize he is a Tibetian Misteiff, the biggest dog species that exist on earth.
14. Momo Kyun Sword
- Logline: A story of a girl and her companion, the dog god.
- Year: 2014
- Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Ecchi
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Momoko is a young swords fighter who embarks on a mission to retrieve her homeland’s tressure from the Demon King.
Along with her are her companions; a dog god, a monkey god, and a pheasant god. Together they face many challenges and fight with all their might.
About Inugami
Inugami is a God. He raised Momoko along with the other two Gods. He is a highly-skilled fighter, especially in close combat.
He is very strict when it comes to honor and manners and likes to uphold them at all times.
13. Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle Mini
- Logline: A story of a princess and a demon king who kidnapped her.
- Year: 2020
- Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
The demon king kidnaps a beautiful princess and now she lives with the demon king in his palace along with his loyal dog and other servants.
But the problem is ever since the princess got kidnapped, she hasn’t been able to sleep properly, so she tries hard to find ways so that she can get her sleep.
About Great Dane Siberian
Siberian is an anthropomorphic dog of the monster species. He is a loyal servant of the Demon King and highly respects him, and wants others to show respect to him.
Despite acting hard from the outside, he is soft from the inside and only wishes well for the people he likes.
12. Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds
- Logline: An orphaned peasant boy who becomes a musketeer in King Louis XIII’s court.
- Year: 1981
- Genre: Comedy, Adventure
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds is an dog anime adaptation of a classic French novel by Alexandre Dumas. It follows the adventures of Dogtanian, a canine musketeer, and his three friends. The show has been praised for its animation style, humor, and soundtrack.
This show is about more than just one dog’s journey to become a member of the king’s guard. It depicts how justice can be achieved through hard work and determination no matter the obstacles you face. Besides telling an interesting story, this anime will make you laugh. There are plenty of funny scenes where you’ll find yourself laughing out loud (or barking like a dog).
About Dogtanian
Originally spelled as D’Artagnan, Dogtanian flies to Paris in the hope to become a Musketeer. He wears a red cap paired with a similar colored top.
His personality resembles a typical dog from a cartoon network show. This cartoonish attire makes it hard to deduct his breed.
11. With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day is Fun
- Logline: Daily life with a pet dog and pet cat.
- Year: 2020
- Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Matsumoto-san is the proud owner of a dog and a cat. She calls them Inu-kun and Neko-sama. The dog is innocent and jolly and the cat is clever and devious. Every day is a new adventure in the house of Matsumoto.
About Inu-kun
Inu-kun is a small gray dog with fuzzy ears. He is always cheerful and never sad or angry. He is also very innocent and always forgives the cat for her nonsense. He likes to sing and dance and lives his every day happily.
10. Casshan
- Logline: A human and a mechanical dog team up to fight evil Black King.
- Year: 1993
- Genre: Adventure, Sci-fi
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
In the distant future, robots have gained self-awareness and pushed humanity on the verge of extinction.
Casshan is a human who is fighting with all his might to stop Black King, the leader of all machines from his evil intention. And he is being supported by a mechanical dog called Friender.
About Friender
Friender is a loyal robotic dog with a decent amount of intelligence. He is completely made out of metal and has bright yellow eyes.
Friender is a very capable machine that will hunt anyone who tries to harm someone he cares about.
9. TAMA of the 3rd District: Have You Seen My TAMA?
- Logline: Daily adventures of a cat and a dog.
- Year: 1988
- Genre: Adventure
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
The story is about the daily life of Tama, a cat, and his friend Pochi, the dog along with many other animals. They also have their human form.
Every episode follows the new adventures of these friends as they try to have a great time together.
About Pochi
Pochi is a cute dog and his human form is also beautiful. He has a very shy personality and is afraid of many things. Though he tries really hard to act strong.
His owner owns a Tofu shop and Pochi is tasked to guard it. He is best friends with Tama the cat.
8. Excel Saga
- Logline: Adventures of Excel and her associate Hyatt in saving the world.
- Year: 1999
- Genre: Comedy, Sci Fi
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Excel Saga is anime adapted from a manga of the same name by Rikdo Koshi. The series follows the misadventures of Excel, a simple woman with extraordinary powers, and her partner Hyatt as they attempt to obliterate Earth to create a new planet that will serve as a utopia for all humans.
Excel’s power is greater than anyone can imagine, but she cannot control it. Her spells always result in bizarre accidents, often destroying whatever she sets out to destroy. This makes her an object of fear by those around her. In desperation, she joins forces with Hyatt–an uptight high school girl with incredible intelligence–to rid the world of humanity and create a utopia just for themselves!
About Menchi
Menchi is the closest to Excel. She is a female Shiba Inu and was found by Excel on the streets. She cannot communicate but does understand human languages. Although the anime often pops up subtitles explaining her feelings.
The anime features 2-3 episodes strictly focused on Menchi’s present and past life with previous owner. Her stature is like that of a small kitten which makes her adorably cute.
7. Ginga Densetsu Weed
- Logline: A journey of a brave dog to find his father.
- Year: 2005
- Genre: Adventure, Drama
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Weed is a young dog, who finds out that he’s the son of Gin, a legendary dog who along with his gang fought against a monstrous bear and defeated it.
Weed decides to search for his father and in his journey, he comes across many friends and enemies.
About Weed
Weed is a very brave dog with a great sense of justice. He is helpful, kind, and very compassionate. He never gives up on his goals and stays persistent till the end. He isn’t afraid t die and faces his enemies head-on.
6. Oda Shinamon Nobunaga
- Logline: A story of a Samurai General reincarnated as a dog.
- Year: 2020
- Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Shinamon used to be a very powerful Samurai general in the feudal era and now he is reborn as a dog in the present.
Along with him, most of his peer and rivals of the past has also been reincarnated into other animals, mostly dogs. Together these warriors of the past, spend their time enjoying and taking it easy.
About Cinnamon
Cinnamon is an Akita Inu dog in his present life. Despite being a fearsome general in the past, he finds his current form cute and likes his new life.
He is kind and very adaptive. He also likes to conduct himself as a warrior at all times.
5. Sherlock HOUND
- Logline: The story of Sherlock Holmes reimagined in the dog world.
- Year: 1984
- Genre: Adventure, Action
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
The story is set in a dog world where Sherlock Holmes along with his partner Watson, runs around town solving mysteries. Together they come up with some of the most outrageous plans to unravel secrets.
Sherlock HOUND was created by Japanese artist Kogoro Yoshida. The show is well known for not featuring any humans at all, only animals!
About Sherlock
Sherlock is a very smart dog with great knowledge of various fields and a very high level of intuition.
He is very calm and composed in all situations. He loves to smoke Tobacco and do chemistry experiments in his apartment.
4. Silver Fang
- Logline: A story brave dog looking to avenge his father.
- Year: 1986
- Genre: Adventure, Action
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
Gin is a brave dog who saw his father getting killed by a monstrous bear.
He vows to kill the bear and sets out on a mission to search for strong dogs to form a team and fight the battle of their life against the bear who has never been defeated.
About Gin
Gin is a strong and brave dog with all the qualities of a leader. He is kind and compassionate and isn’t afraid to die.
He deeply cares for his friends and will do anything to protect them. He is strong-willed and highly mature.
3. Dog & Scissors
- Logline: Kazuhito’s new life as a dog is full of misery and pain.
- Year: 2013
- Genre: Comedy, Supernatural
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
With a title like Dog and Scissors, it’s no surprise that this show is unlike any dog anime out there. The story revolves around a high school boy named Kazuhito Harumi.
Kazuhito gets reincarnated as a dog with the same name when he gets killed in an attempt to save his favorite novelist. In his new life as a dog, his favorite novelist appears again in form of an old lady holding a pair of scissors in her hand.
About Kazuhito Harumi
In his past life, Kazuhito Harumi was an average middle school student passionate about reading Shinobu Akiyama’s novels.
In his current form as a cute puppy, he is no more able to enjoy his favorite novels. Fortunately, he is adopted by his favorite novelist and enjoys the luxury of getting another chance to live.
2. The Morose Mononokean
- Logline: Tale of an unfortunate high school student who gets possessed by a spirited dog.
- Year: 2016
- Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi
- Type: TV
Anime Synopsis
The anime The Morose Mononokean is a supernatural show that follows the adventures of a 15-year-old high school student named Ashiya Hanae. On just the first day of high school, he gets possessed by a small-spirited dog named Fuzzy.
As his condition deteriorates the fuzzy creature gets bigger in size. Ashiya Hanae desperately seeks the help of an exorcist. Fortunately, he says a flyer advertisement for Haruitsuki Abeno
About Fuzzy
Fuzzy is just like the name sounds. Wrapped in a thick sheet of fur, fuzzy is a spirited dog who has attached himself to Ashiya Hanae. He is selectively expressive.
He often blushes when loved. Fuzzy can also be seen raged up when he saves Ashiya from dying.
1. Sword of the Stranger
- Logline: Kotarou and his dog friend Tobimaru must find a safer place before the Ming army finds them.
- Year: 2017
- Genre: Action, Adventure
- Type: Movie
Anime Synopsis
Sword of the Stranger is a Japanese dog anime movie. The story is centered around a young ronin called Kotarou and his bodyguard-dog Tobimaru.
Both are haunted by the Chinese assassins for a crime that they never committed. Fortunately, they met their savior, Nanashi. Nanashi is another wandering swordsman who agrees to save our protagonist and his partner from the Chinese army.
About Tobimaru
Tobimaru is Kotarou’s companion and loves his master to death. He plays the main character in the movie where he constantly sticks around with his master avoiding and interference with the Chinese Army.
Neither his age nor his breed is revealed in the movie. It is interesting to note how Tobimaru can always recognize a person’s true nature before Kotarou. He is one of the most likable anime dogs you’ll find on this list.
