The Egyptian god Anubis had a canine head, and this may be one reason why dogs in the Bible are never mentioned in a good light. Pigs were unclean, both ritually and as food (Lev 11:7), but dogs were the embodiment of gluttony, scavengers sent by God to tear and devour.
Biblical Meaning of a Dog
In the art of the Middle Ages dogs are presented as the symbols of fidelity and protection. Also, the Bible says that all our sins can be healed after we confess them, which is represented by a dog who is licking our wounds in order to cure them
The Dog spirit animal is a powerful symbol of unconditional love, loyalty, and protection. To understand what they symbolize, we must look into dogs in art history. The dog symbolism in art is related to safeguarding, devotion, fidelity, and strong faith.
The biblical bestiary The biblical bestiary is more a zoo than a farm. Dogs in the biblical text are nei- ther domestic animals nor pets. They are stuck halfway between wild animals and those useful to man.
OP, THANK YOU for this. Please bear with me... I'm wading into a spiritual realm within which I have no training and little experience. I just need to get this into words and maybe someone more adept can help me out.
I think dogs are an earthly manifestation of a spiritual archetype. And by that, I'm trying to say that I think the behavior of a dog and it's "happiness" is directly related to how well it is trained by and cared for by it's human. As well, the well-being of the dog is a reflection (I think) of the status of the soul of the dog's human. I think of this as the "archetypal" spirit animal. Maybe archetypal is not the right word but the I think the relationship is far more than most people realize
If the human has no self-discipline, the human will dissipate their own well-being and bring brokenness and danger to all involved - including the dog(s). If the human neglects spiritual health, EVERYTHING and everyone surrounding the human will suffer. The poor dog cannot help but manifest the brokenness, pointlessness and soullessness of the human.
We were created to be the stewards here. We MUST give care and guidance to all - including our dogs - who are vulnerable, relative to us. I believe (yes, really) that if we are privileged to step out onto God's Bright Day when we leave this life, we will meet our beloved dogs (in a form I can't imagine) who will be - in many ways - a reflection of our own souls. May we all give our souls and our wonderful dogs the loving care - and prayer - they deserve.