Songs About Dogs: The Best Dog Songs Ever Recorded

Paul McCartney wrote “Martha My Dear” about his Old English Sheepdog. Neil Young wrote “Old King” for a hound named Elvis. And a Trinidadian named Anslem Douglas wrote the hook that an entire stadium will still scream back at you: “Who let the dogs out?” Dogs have been showing up in songs for as long as people have been writing them, sometimes as the whole point, sometimes smuggled in as a metaphor.

Here are the dog songs worth knowing, sorted the way you’d actually want them: the all-time best, the country ones, the ones that will wreck you after you lose a dog, and the famous questions people keep asking. The reader picks that started this post are still here at the bottom, untouched.

The best songs about dogs

1. “Martha My Dear”, The Beatles (1968). McCartney named it for his sheepdog Martha. It sounds like a love song to a woman; it is a love song to a dog.
2. “Hound Dog”, Elvis Presley (1956). Written by Leiber and Stoller, first cut by Big Mama Thornton in 1952. The dog is a metaphor, but no dog-song list is honest without it.
3. “Who Let the Dogs Out”, Baha Men (2000). The most-played dog song on earth, and almost nobody can name a second line.
4. “Atomic Dog”, George Clinton (1982). The funk record that gets sampled more than it gets listened to. “Bow wow wow, yippie yo, yippie yay.”
5. “I Love My Dog”, Cat Stevens (1966). His debut single. We told the full story of Cat Stevens’ dog song separately; the thesis is right there in the title.
6. “Old King”, Neil Young (1992). A banjo tune for a real dog named Elvis. It’s a grin and a goodbye in the same three minutes.
7. “Shannon”, Henry Gross (1976). Written about Beach Boy Carl Wilson’s Samoyed, who died after being hit by a car. A soft-rock hit that is quietly a grief song.
8. “Walking the Dog”, Rufus Thomas (1963). An R&B dance hit the Rolling Stones liked enough to cover on their first album.
9. “Me and You and a Dog Named Boo”, Lobo (1971). The road-trip song with a dog riding shotgun.
10. “Hey Bulldog”, The Beatles (1968). A throwaway studio jam that turned into one of their tightest rockers.
11. “How Much Is That Doggie in the Window”, Patti Page (1952). The one your grandmother knows by heart, the original pet-shop earworm.
12. “Old Blue”, traditional, covered by The Byrds (1969). A folk standard about a good dog, passed down long before anyone recorded it.
13. “Diamond Dogs”, David Bowie (1974). More dystopia than kennel, but the dogs are the whole mood.
14. “Seamus”, Pink Floyd (1971). A blues built around an actual howling dog. We dug up the strange story behind it.
15. “The Dog Song”, Nellie McKay (2004). A jaunty, joyful argument for going to the shelter and bringing one home.

Country songs about dogs

No genre loves a dog like country does. If you want one playlist, start here.

1. “Feed Jake”, Pirates of the Mississippi (1991). A plea to look after the dog when you’re gone, and the band’s biggest hit.
2. “Ol’ Red”, Blake Shelton (2002). A prison-escape story built entirely around a bloodhound. George Jones cut it first in 1990.
3. “Maggie’s Song”, Chris Stapleton (2020). Written after his terrier died. “Run, Maggie, run” is the whole heartbreak in three words.
4. “I’ll Name the Dogs”, Blake Shelton (2017). Domestic-bliss shorthand: you name the babies, I’ll name the dogs.
5. “Move It On Over”, Hank Williams (1947). The original doghouse anthem, told from the doghouse.
6. “The More Boys I Meet”, Carrie Underwood (2007). “The more I love my dog.” Hard to argue.

Songs about losing a dog

If you’ve just said goodbye to a dog, these are the ones people reach for. Play them when you’re ready, not before.

1. “Old Shep”, Red Foley (1933). Foley wrote it about his own boyhood dog. Elvis grew up on it and reportedly choked up every time he sang it.
2. “Mr. Bojangles”, Jerry Jeff Walker (1968). A drifter, and the dog he grieved for twenty years. The saddest verse in a song most people think is upbeat.
3. “Maggie’s Song”, Chris Stapleton. A full dog’s life, puppy to last breath, in one verse-chorus.
4. “Old King”, Neil Young. Loss with a banjo and a smile, which is somehow worse and better at once.
5. “Shannon”, Henry Gross. Grief dressed up as a 1970s radio hit.

Who let the dogs out? The dog songs everyone asks about

Who sang “Who Let the Dogs Out”? The Baha Men, in 2000. It was written by Anslem Douglas, a Trinidadian, who originally called it “Doggie.” It won a Grammy and has soundtracked roughly every sporting event since.

Who wrote “Hound Dog”? Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, in 1952, for blues singer Big Mama Thornton. Elvis Presley’s 1956 version is the one most people picture.

Is “Dog Days Are Over” about dogs? No. Florence + the Machine’s 2008 hit borrows the old “dog days” idiom for late summer. Great song, not a dog song.

Two more for the music nerds: why dogs genuinely seem to love Bob Dylan, and the real story of Nipper, the dog in the HMV logo.

One thing every list above quietly proves: the dogs people write songs about are almost never show dogs. They’re the scruffy, found, loved-anyway ones. If a song just made you want a dog, skip the breeder and adopt one instead. Want to know what your own dog is “saying” between verses? Read how to read dog body language.

Years ago we asked Dog with Blog readers a sillier question: if your dog could actually sing, what would be on the playlist? Their picks are too good to delete.

Bonus: 15 songs our readers swear their dogs would sing

1. ‘Iris’ ― Goo Goo Dolls

You’re the closest to heaven that I’ll ever be.
And I don’t wanna go home right now… 

If there ever was a lady Dr Dolittle, Geetalima di’ would be her. The dog whisperer has so often heard her four-legged kids sway their ears to this song.

2. ‘Theory Of The Crows’ ― The National

Abhilasha and her adopted kids swear by The National’s words:

And if I forget you
I’ll have nobody left to forget…

 3. ‘Fix You’ ― Coldplay

Riya Bamniyal, the actress/model/TV Presenter, but most importantly a dog-lover, knows that dogs don’t lie about love and are always there to fix all that’s broken.

When the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can’t replace
When you love someone but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
I will try to fix you.

 4.’Happy’ ― Pharrell Williams

Acclaimed model and Devika Raizada and her pooch Phoebe know that there’s no ‘Y’ in ‘Happiness’ 🙂

It might seem crazy what I’m about to say
Sunshine she’s here, you can take a break
I’m a hot air balloon that could go to space
With the air, like I don’t care baby by the way

Because I’m happy
Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof
Because I’m happy.

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The Bark Is the Song of the Dog

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5. ‘Free Fallin’ ― John Mayer

Devout dog worshipper Natasha Adlakha and Google are John Mayer fans 🙂

I wanna write her name in the sky
I wanna free fall out into nothin’
I’m gonna leave this world for a while

Now I’m free, free fallin’, fallin’
Now I’m free, free fallin’, fallin’.

6. ‘Let Me Sleep’ ― Pearl Jam

Ira and her pooch believe in bringing home the Christmas spirit…

Cold wind blows on the soles of my feet
Heaven knows nothing of me
I’m lost nowhere to go
Oh when I was a kid oh how magic it seemed
Oh please let me sleep it’s Christmas time.

 7. ‘Kabhi aana tu meri gully’― Euphoria 

 Sukhda and her fur babies are all for Palash Sen’s Euphoria and their anthem of choice croons around the streets.

8. ‘Red Hill Mining Town’ ― U2

Kaalicharan‘s geeky Greek friend Virginia and her best friend Peru have U2’s cult hit as their song.

 I can lose myself. You, I can’t live without.

9. ‘Listen To The Man’ ― George Ezra

Pristine as the river, I believe she’s named after, Kaveri has so often helped this dog when it comes to spreading adoption updates. Not only this, but she rescues in hoards and across species – guinea pigs, cats, dogs… humans 🙂

Here, we have Pebble And Beetle at their aww-worthy best!

I feel your head resting heavy on your single bed
I want to hear all about it, get it all off your chest
I feel the tears and you’re not alone
When I hold you well I won’t let go
Why should we care for what they’re selling us anyway
We’re so young girl and you know.

10. ‘Tuney mari entriyaan, dil mein baji ghantiyaan’ ― Gunday

Divya’s best bud ‘Saawan’ is a Bollywood buff and since he’s happiest on everyone’s arrival, his song exudes the same excitement for the doorbell!

11. ‘The Bare Necessities’ ― Jungle Book 

Having rescued 8 dogs, Dhruv knows that the simple joys of life are all that matter. A fan of The Jungle Book, he even has a mutt named Baloo. 

Look for the bare necessities
The simple bare necessities
Forget about your worries and your strife
I mean the bare necessities
Old Mother Nature’s recipes
That brings the bare necessities of life.

12. ‘My Best Friend’  ― Weezer

Sandhya Gola and her brother, the sibling team which feeds their canine neighbours, believe that Weezer’s My Best Friend is the apt song that describes their bond with the dogs.

There is no other one that can take your place
I feel happy inside when I see your face
I hope you believe me Because I speak sincerely
and I mean it when I tell you
I need you.
You are my best friend and I love you,
and I love you Yes I do.

13. ‘Army Of One‘  ― Coldplay

When we asked Deepthi which song would it be if her dog could sing, it was Coldplay’s latest album.

So I never say die
Aim never untrue
I’m never so high as when I’m with you
And there isn’t a fire that I wouldn’t walk through
My army of one is gonna fight for you.

14. ‘Where Are You Going?‘  ― Dave Matthews Band 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BhHnSPMjF69/?taken-by=dogwith_blog
Where are you going,
Where do you go.
Are you looking for answers,
To questions, under the stars
Well, if along the way,
You are grown weary,
You can rest with me
Until a brighter day
When you ok.

I am no superman, 
I have no answers for you. 
I am no hero, 
And that’s for sure.
But I know one thing,
That’s where you are, is where I belong.
I do know 
Where you go,
Is where I want to be.

15. ‘Set The Fire To The Third Bar’ ― Snow Patrol 

And miles from where you are
I lay down on the cold ground
And I, I pray that something picks me up
And sets me down in your warm arms
And miles from where you are
I lay down on the cold ground
And I, I pray that something picks me up
And sets me down in your warm arms

Over to you, which song would it be if your dog could sing?