Dr Jacqui Ley, from the Animal Welfare Science Centre at Monash University, found that dogs fit into five personality dimensions — extroversion, trainability or cleverness, self assuredness and motivation, amicability with other dogs and people, and cautiousness.

A simplified list of dog personality categories can be found at the National Library of Medicine in an article by K. Wahlgren. His studied personality traits categories were: friendly, active, obedient, and emotional.

It has been suggested that the personality of a dog reflects the personality of the owner. But whether it is nature or nurture, it is fun to see what dog breeds are owned by famous people and compare those breeds with the public personality of the owner.

For example, Jimmy Buffet, the iconic singer for the boomers and laid back to the max star owns a Golden Retriever named Cheeseburger. Shirley Temple owned a Pekingese - enough said. Martha Stewart owns a Chow - no pun intended, and Jessica Simpson recently got a Maltepoo - a designer dog - no surprise there.

The Citizen’s Lunchbox has an entertaining, alphabetized list of dogs and their famous owners. The list includes political superstars, writers, celebrities, and royalty. The site also provides the name of the pet and the source of the information.

Famous People's Dogs

Posted by Barbara.