Some might disagree, but we believe that no one loves us more than our dog. From the first day we brought him home, he has leaped in delight when he sees us, no matter what. That is pure devotion. They say a dog’s heart is as big as the world, and you dog lovers out there know what we mean.
We also know that our dog is, well, a “dog.” He has, shall we say, several girlfriends and a couple of boyfriends. When he is “in the mood” we just shove them outside and ignore the ruckus.
This is clearly why historically dogs are symbols of both devotional love as well as sexual love. It is also why we neutered and spayed our dogs, though it never seems to stop the shenanigans.
In myth and folklore, dogs are symbols of sexual power and symbols of that deep transcendent love found in committed relationships, friendships, and spiritual sharing across cultures.
Dog Love
No dog was more loving than Hachiko, the famous dog of Tokyo, and now he exists as an honored spirit. Hachiko was utterly devoted to his owner and walked him to his commuter train every day and met him every night. His owner died at work and never came home. For the rest of his life, Hachiko came to the station every morning and every evening and was increasingly loved by all until he passed away.
In Shinto, the Animist religion of Japan, such a transcendent love and spirit is honored. Many consider Hachiko a powerful spirit to this day. They even created a statue in his honor. Hachiko’s statue is a famous shrine and a popular place for friends and lovers to meet.
Our personal bond with our dog is so deep it sometimes amazes us. He knows when we are sad and comforts us; he knows when we are joyful and plays with us. It is a selfless love indeed, and it began from the first moment we got our new puppy and bonded with it, cuddling the small black ball of fur for hours. We believe that kind of love is spiritual.
One example of this powerful, bonding love magic is found in Mongolia. When taking a puppy from a mother dog, the mother dog is honored and fed by those adopting the puppy. A light blue ceremonial scarf covered with auspicious symbols is given to the family. Forever after, that dog is considered a true family member, like a new child.
This loving embrace of a dog as family member carries over into the afterlife in many cultures. In ancient Egypt, dogs were shown doing everything with their humans and, like humans, were buried with food and other comforts as one would a family member.
We believe the same way. We bought a cement dog statue resembling our dog. Now he is very old, so we know that when he passes we too will bury him with his toys, his collar, and some treats under this statue. We know that the love we feel for him and he for us will continue. Some kinds of dog magic never change.
What of romantic love? Dogs always love us, and that means they want to make sure that we make good romantic choices. Recently a friend dating a nice guy broke up with him because, as she told us, “My dog hated him, what could I do?” Even dog spirits need to give their approval, it would appear.
Most know of the tradition of a newlywed groom carrying the bride over the threshold, but did you know that there is a dog magic element involved? In ancient times, people would have a magical spirit dog guarding the entryway of a home. The groom would carry the bride over to alert the Dog Spirit guardian that this was the new mistress of the home.
Many cultures used domestic dog charms or small dog guardian images in the home to protect the family and the marriage. Even today we can see this in the old Hebrew tradition of keeping a small dog image with your marriage certificate!
Dogs (and other canines) have been associated with sex forever. Even today we call sexually adventurous men and women “foxes,” “wolves,” and “dogs” and being a “hound dog” or “sniffing around” are actually very old idioms of sexual interest along with “wolf whistles,” “dogging” someone, and “woof.”
There are a number of dog gods and divine dog heroes embodying the sexual urge, and none is as popular as Old Man Coyote, the ubiquitous Native American trickster spirit that used his wiles and silver tongue to mate with many women. In some instances, he is the genetic founder of a tribe. In many Native American myths, the people were so convinced of the coyote’s unbridled libido they depicted him with a huge penis swung over his shoulder or so big that he had to carry it in a pack! There are many racy stories about Coyote and his exploits.
Sometimes sexually aggressive people really were dogs. The Greeks called were-dogs Cynanthropes (“dog people”) or Cynocephali (“dog headed”), and the existence of “dog people” is a common idea in many cultures. Cyn means “dog” in Greek, by the way. Such dog men (or women) were universally viewed as lustier than normal people. The same applies to werewolves and were-foxes, and is in the description of most forms of shape-shifters. In Japan and Korea, fox spirits and wolf people have a history of seducing and even marrying humans.
We know how lusty dogs can get, but did you know during the dark ages, the devil was said to visit witches in the form of a black dog and have sexual congress with them? This might be traced to the goddess Hecate’s black dog, also associated with wild sexuality. Our dog is a black dog and while we are pretty sure he is not the devil (usually), he certainly is romantically wild sometimes.
Dogs are associated with many erotically inclined gods. This includes the lusty gods Pan, Silvanus, and Faunus (the Roman Pan). Faunus was famous for the wild ritual of fertility called Lupercalia or “wolf festival.” In this celebration, satyr-like men wearing strips of wolf fur chased and lightly whipped naked women hoping to conceive. This was considered a Roman highlight of the year and at the beginning of the festival priests sacrificed a dog to help unleash fertility and wild sexuality.
Love and sex are topics that preoccupy much of our lives. Of course, as usual, dogs sit right there in the middle of things. These themes of love and lust remind us that we are still animals, and our loving dogs are there to remind us every day that this can be a good thing.
Spells, Meditations & Charms
Imprinting with a New Puppy Spell
When a new puppy enters your life, it is a bit traumatized. Where did Mommy go? What is this new bright world? What are all these new scents? Waaaaa! It is just a baby after all, and you just adopted it. Make the adoption official with this magical exercise. This first imprinting with your new partner is the most crucial.
You will need:
• A small, deep blue soft cloth or blanket made of natural fabric, soft cotton, or wool (a baby blanket is perfect)
• Some rose water
Important: Sleep with this cloth or blanket close to your skin at least one night before you get the puppy. Before you go to sleep, hold the blanket close and burn calming incense (jasmine is perfect) while thinking happy puppy thoughts.
At twilight or early evening, go outside with the blanket and stand quietly, thinking peaceful thoughts. Breathe deeply. Completely relax. Place the blanket about you. Feel your joy at getting a new puppy. Surround yourself with calming blue light. Say:
The lair is safe,
The night brings peace.
All stress and sorrow
Now release.
Om.
Sprinkle a little rose water over the blanket and the area. Chant om softly as you do so. See the light of calm spirit cover all.
Later, after the puppy feeds from your hands and is sleepy, sit in a dimly lit place. Face north. Put the blanket on your lap and place the new puppy on it.
Stroke the puppy slowly, softly, from nose to tail, and say:
From sorrow be clear.
Know I am here
To love and protect you
And banish all fear,
(Whisper the dog’s new name).
Repeat this as many times as you like. See loving, calming blue energy enter and calm your puppy. As you hold your new puppy hum softly these words:
You are mine now,
You are mine now,
You are mine now.
Here is peace.
Om.
Hold and love the little baby as long as you like. When it is put in its puppy bed, repeat the last chant while your puppy sleeps on this blanket. This will be its special calming blanket for life.
Spell to Deepen the Bond with Your Dog
A dog is a friend for life, one of the few stable things in an otherwise often shaky and confusing world. The bond between a dog and owner (and vice versa) is a sacred one and has been ever since the first wolf pups choose to hang out with humans. This is a very old and powerful spell used to cement the bonds of loyalty and love between a human and a dog. This spell will work for an adopted puppy or for a dog that already reached maturity. Here is a relationship you can count on, even when life gets “ruff.”
You will need:
• A nice piece of meat or a special treat
• A copper plate or bowl
• A pinch of dirt
On a full moon, gather your loving dog to you. Place the meat on the copper plate and set it on a table. Closely breathe three times on the meat, seeing your spirit light entering the meat. Then say:
By bond and breath,
By love;
By bond and breath,
By joy;
By bond and breath,
By loyalty;
Canum et ludens.*
So mote it be.
Take the dirt and sprinkle it around the dog’s bowl. As you do so, say:
Here he’s rooted, here he’ll stay,
Abiding with me, never going away.
Green magic, (your dog’s name).
Let your dog lick the hand that the dirt was in. While your dog licks your hand, say:
Here I am rooted, here I will stay,
Together with him forever I say,
Green magic, (your name).
Your dog is probably very interested in the food by now. Feed your dog with love and an open heart. You are now spirit bound and will stick together through all. You are partners. Have fun.
* Translation (Latin): Canum et ludens = Dog Joy.
Loyalty & Love Visualization
You and your dog have a special bond of undying loyalty and unconditional love. Pure loyalty will only make your bond become stronger. Loving and loyalty work each way for both of you. Underlying this is trust, because without trust it is almost impossible to have a loyal and loving relationship. A meditation for the both of you can strengthen this loyalty and love for each other, and that is a beautiful thing.
You will need:
• Your dog
• A staff or wand, something previously charged magically is best
• Cinnamon
• A park or wooded place where you can mark the earth
With a deep breath, chant om. Draw a large pentagram in the earth, large enough for you and your dog. As you do so, chant ah.
Bring your dog with you into the pentagram and seal it by sprinkling cinnamon clockwise about you both, chanting hum.
Sit within this magical circle. Hold your dog in your lap or as much as you can if you own a big dog. Sit calmly. Put a pinch of cinnamon on your crown and on your dog’s crown and chant:
Om ah hum*
Pet your dog with your right hand and put your left around it. When your dog is calm, close your eyes and visualize white light surrounding both of you, bathing you in pure love. As the white light surrounds you meditate on you and your dog’s favorite place. Visualize both your dog and yourself as beings of pure interlocking energy. Now mediate on the fact that you are both one in the white light. Surround yourself in harmony. Listen to both of your hearts by placing one hand on your dog’s heart and one on yours. Now see a silver cord connect and tie your hearts to one another. Keep doing this until you feel the cord tightening and your hearts molding into one.
Visualize this glowing heart within the pentagram you have cast. Inhale and feel this pentagram become absorbed within you both. Open your eyes anytime and hug your dog in your arms. Chant:
Om ah hum
Erase the pentagram and leave a pinch of cinnamon as an offering for the spirits of this place. Go about your day.
* Translation (Sanskrit): Hum = Buddhist mantra or vibration of heavy protection and purification; Om ah hum = Mind, voice, heart.
Getting Along with Other Pets & People
in a New Home Chant
Everyone living in your home already knows each other’s strengths and weaknesses. There are well-established relationships among all of the family members. So, it is hard for a new dog to know how it will be part of the family. Being introduced into a new home is difficult for even the friendliest dog, as family members already have their territories mapped out in the home. Intruding into the territory of another makes it even more difficult for the newest member of the family to feel at home. A new dog will need care and love to learn how to be part of the family. Helping the newest family member to feel at home may need a little boost and this meditation can help with that.
You will need:
• The dog’s bed
• All the new dog’s belongings
• Pictures of all the family members in your home
• A meal for all the members of the family, any kind of food
everyone likes is fine
Have your new dog lie in its bed and everyone in the family sit around taking turns petting the new family member. Everyone closes their eyes and meditates on the new dog getting along with everyone and everyone getting along with it. Have the other animals in the home join you too, and chant over and over again:
A home in harmony is bliss—hau.*
Now each of you pass around the dog’s belongings and chant:
With each of these belongings
We welcome you.
This our potlatch
From us to you.
Hau, hau, hau.
Gather around the dinner table to have your first meal together, and before you put the new puppy’s food down, say:
Bless this food.
Bless our newest member.
We now have one heart home
Now and forever.
Take a photo of all of you together and this is your new family picture. When it is developed, hang the picture near where the dog will sleep. Now everyone should enjoy the family’s first meal together.
* Translation (Lakota Sioux): Hau = Greetings.
Dog Romance Success in Breeding Spell
Finding a suitable mate for your dog is very important. Some matches aren’t made in heaven. Most purebreds have some sort of genetic problem due to lines of inbreeding. Sometimes it is really the luck of the draw, but you need to narrow down which dog you choose to breed your dog with to result in the healthiest puppies and not pass down genetic problems.
Finding your dog the perfect mate for breeding may take help using divination. To do this type of divination, you will need to select a few dogs that you want to breed your dog with. Will your dog like what dog you pick as the future mother or father of the puppies to be? This is where divination comes in and puppy love blooms.
You will need:
• A die (one of a pair of dice)
• Colored paper: pink if your dog is female, and blue if your dog is male
• A red rose
• A red pen
• A red candle
• Matches
Choose the correct color paper and write on it the names of dogs you picked for possible breeding. Put by each name any number from one to six. Now draw the astrological symbol of Venus 
over the names.
Light the candle and say:
Venus bonum fortuna.*
Fill with zest,
Spice it up,
Amore est.*
Then place the die on top of the paper. With your dog on your lap, wave the red rose over your dog and say:
Goddess of love, goddess of passion,
Find us a dog that will breed with compassion.
Successful breeding come to me
By Venus and Adonis may it be.
Omnia amore est.*
Now roll the die on the paper and the number that comes up is the right dog for the job.
Look deeply into your dog’s eyes and tell him or her you found it a special friend. Offer the rose to the goddess Venus and then place it out of your dog’s reach but near where it sleeps.
* Translation (Latin): Venus bonum fortuna = Great fortune through Venus; Amore est = Love is!; Omnia amore est = All this is love.
Making Your Dog Your Familiar
Shamans, sorcerers, witches, and other magic makers often have familiars, or pet friends, as part of their magical reality. Such power pets can help in countless ways of spirit, but forming an initial bond is important and, according to ancient lore, traditional. Here is a spell for making your dog into your familiar.
You will need:
• A sharp pin cleaned with some rubbing alcohol
• Your dog’s favorite dinner food
• A clear crystal
• Rosemary
• A white candle
• Matches
Do this on a full moon. The moon should be in view through a window or you can do this outside.
Walk around your area with your clear crystal. As you circle about sprinkle rosemary and say three times:
Apos pantos kakodaimonos.*
Be gone all negative spirits, powers, and feelings.
By the mother of the mountain
And mother of the sea,
Mother of animals,
So mote it be.
Now sit face-to-face with your dog and be silent. Lean your forehead against your dog’s forehead and open your mind and heart with love and caring. Silently ask your dog if it wants to enter into the sacred pact of the familiar. Commune.
If all seems well, take the pin and prick your left thumb. Use the pin to write your dog’s name on the candle. Drip three drops of blood into the dog food, saying:
By Crone and Mother and Maid,
By star wolf, moon wolf, sun wolf red,
The pact is given and laid.
By the heart and the head.
Kyon, Kyon, Kyon.*
Take up the rosemary and burn it, waving smoke over you and your dog as you now chant:
(Your dog’s name) and I are one.
Our minds, our hearts are one.
Our bodies are one.
Give your dog its food, if it readily eats, your pet is now your familiar. If not, it is not yet time. When finished, repeat the communing and then end as you will… Maybe with a howl?
* Translation (Greek): Apos pantos kakodaimonos = Be gone all demons; (Old Greek) Kyon = Dog.