- 1). Sketch a small oval somewhere in the upper half of your page to represent the dog's head. This oval should be slightly wider than it is tall, but not by much more. Use light pencil strokes to construct this oval, as you will only be using this as a guideline.
- 2). Draw a larger oval to the side and below the dog's head to represent the basis for its body. This oval should also be slight greater in width than height. Connect the head and the oval-shaped body with slightly curved lines to reflect the way the dog's neck appears in the picture you are using as a reference guide.
- 3). Add a rear end to the dog's body using a semi-circular shape. Check the rough draft of your dog with the picture you are using as a reference for any similarities or differences in proportions.
- 4). Add the snout of the dog to the intended side of the oval-shaped head. Clean up the lines that connect these two parts to form the basic outline of the dog's head. Erase any guidelines you used for this particular body part so that you may move onto create the facial features. If the mouth of the dog is open, carefully detail each of the teeth with sharp triangle-shaped features.
- 5). Draw two triangular-shaped objects on top of the dog's head to represent the ears of this animal. Depending on what breed of dog you have chosen as your model, the exact shape of these ears can differ slightly.
- 6). Draw two small ovals inside the head of the dog to represent the two eyes. Make sure they are the same size. Sketch a small circle inside each of these ovals to create the pupils. Add small lines below the eyes of the dog to represent the hairy texture in the face, if necessary.
- 7). Sketch each of the dog's legs, taking note of the exact position of this animal in the picture you are using as a reference guide. Draw slightly bent limbs, ensuring that these legs are drawn specific to how the animal actually moves. Add rigid lines to the outlines of these legs to further the hairy texture.
- 8). Draw each of the dog's paws as they are featured at the bottom of each visible leg. These paws have an oval-like appearance, yet the individual toes of each paw can be clearly defined by curved lines. Check the picture of the dog to assist you for placement of these paws to proportionally depict these features.
- 9). Sketch the tail of the dog to resemble the particular breed you have chosen. For retrievers and labs, you will need to use long pencil strokes to create a tail that reflects a hairy texture. Other dogs may feature stubbed tails, therefore you will need to draw small ovals on the rear-end of this animal.
- 10
Outline all of the intended pencil lines of your dog with an ink pen. Be careful to not trace over any of the guidelines you used to construct the body or head of this dog, though. Let the ink dry, then completely erase any remaining pencil marks.