How to Make an Origami Dog

Co-authored by Lois Wade

Origami is the folding of paper to create art in different shapes. There are many variations of origami dogs, some different breeds of dogs, others different parts of the dog (like the head). Origami can be a fun activity to do and is easy to do—all you need is a piece of paper and a hard surface to fold on. An intermediate level origami dog can take anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes to make, depending on your skill level.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Making the Beginning Folds

1
Use origami paper or make a square. Origami paper already comes in the shape of a square, but you can make your own square with regular paper. To create a square, take a piece of paper and fold the top corner over to the opposite side of the paper, until the top edge of the paper is in line with the side of the paper. This will create a triangle. Then, cut around the triangle shape and open it up. You should have a square. make a square from normal letter-sized paper
- It's easiest if you start by taking the shortest side of the paper, then fold it down so it lines up along the longest edge. Then, cut off the excess paper to make a perfect square.^{[1]
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- You can use any color for this project—choose a color that you want for your dog.
2
Fold your paper to create a triangle. If your paper doesn't already have a crease down the diagonal, you'll need to create one. Take the top, left corner and meet it with the bottom, right corner, lining up both sides of the triangle. Then, create a crease along the diagonal of the triangle. Unfold your paper back into the square and repeat on the opposite side.
- Once you unfold your paper back into the square you should have 2 diagonals across your square, intersecting in the middle.
- To get nice, sharp creases, run the back of a kitchen spoon across each fold as you make it.^{[2]
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3
Fold the bottom point to the middle crease. Flip your square around until it is in a diamond shape, with a top and bottom point and 2 side points. Then, fold the bottom point upwards, until it reaches the middle crease in your diamond.^{[3]
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4
Turn your diamond and repeat on 2 points. After you have created the first fold, turn your diamond to the left, so that you have another bottom point, and fold that point into the middle crease. Then, turn it to the left again and fold that point inwards. Once you get to the last point, don't fold it. Flip your shape over.^{[4]
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5
Fold the sides of your shape inwards. Once you have flipped your shape over, position it so that the square of the shape is on the left and the triangle with the highest point is pointing towards the right. Then, fold the bottom half of your square over until it reaches the middle crease in your shape. Repeat on the other side, making sure you don't fold the flaps that pop up.
- Basically, once you are done folding, your shape should be very long horizontally, and you should have a diamond shape at the left side of your shape, with a much smaller diamond shape at the right side.
- If you folded your flaps on this fold, your diamond shape would not be complete. As you fold the sides of your square over, they should each have a triangle attached to them (on the top fold the triangle points upwards and on the bottom fold the triangle points downwards). Allow these triangles to flap up with the fold. Don't crease them into the fold.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Creating the Body for the Dog

1
Flip your shape and make creases in the little triangles. Turn your shape to the left, so that the largest diamond is on top and the smallest diamond is pointing towards you. Now, above your largest diamond, you should see 2 little triangles, 1 on the right and 1 on the left. These triangles are right triangles, with their 90° angle as the top corners of the shape. Open up the top right triangle until its top left point meets the edge of your shape.^{[5]
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- Fold along the crease once you have opened up your triangle. Essentially, as you fold your triangle over to create a new shape, the top side of your triangle that was in line with the top edge of your bigger shape, will line up with the left and right side of your shape. Once it has lined up, you can create a crease.
- Remember to press your creases down well. A clean, sharp crease will give your folds more strength.^{[6]
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2
Repeat on the opposite side. Take your top left triangle and open it up. Move the top right point of the triangle towards the edge of your shape and fold along the crease. The top right side of your triangle should line up with the left side of your shape. Create the crease in your folds once everything is lined up.
- When you look at your shape once you have made your folds, you should see a straight top edge, with 2 small points sticking out of the sides. Then, underneath those 2 points you should see your larger diamond with 2 larger points sticking out to the sides. Then, underneath that you should see 2 triangles, with their bases along the sides of your shape. Finally, underneath those you should see a smaller diamond. If you don't have this shape quite right, you might consider going back a few steps and redoing your folds.
3
Open up your largest diamond and create folds. Take the right side of your large diamond and begin to pull it upwards by the outer point. The diamond creates a triangle, and on that triangle you should see 1 crease down the middle and 1 on the left side. Pull your triangle up so that the crease on the left side folds on top of your diamond instead of underneath it. Line up that crease exactly where it was before, except now it will be on top of your shape instead of underneath the fold.^{[7]
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4
Repeat on the opposite side. Take the left side of your diamond and pull it upwards. You should see the same creases, 1 down the middle of the triangle and 1 on the right side. Fold your triangle in the same way, so that the crease on the right side is now on top of your diamond instead of underneath it.
- Once you have done this step, you'll still have somewhat of a large diamond shape, but the top point is inverted into a V instead of a point. Then, above the diamond shape, you should see 2 small squares, 1 on the right and 1 on the left.
5
Fold the top side of your shape over. The 2 squares that were mentioned in the previous step will now be folded over into triangles, or a long trapezoid. Take the top edge of your shape and fold it over until the outer sides of the squares meet to create 1 long, upside-down trapezoid.
6
Flip over your shape and flip the top flap up. Turn your shape over so that you see a long rectangle with a triangle pointing downwards at the bottom. At the top of your shape you should see a triangle pointing downwards. Flip that triangle upwards so that the top point is pointing up instead of down. ^{[8]
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- After you have done this, you should still have your long rectangle with the bottom triangle pointing downwards (almost like a pencil). You should also see 2 triangles coming out of the sides of the rectangle, creating a wing look. Then, you'll see the top triangle you just created.
7
Fold over the wings to create a rectangle. Take the outer point of your right wing and fold it over so that it meets the left point of your triangle wing. As you fold it over, allow the rest of the shape to follow with it, and create a crease along that long fold. Then, unfold that fold.
- As you fold it over, you want the 2 sides of your wing, or your triangle to line up. If you looked at just that part of your shape it would create a rectangle.
8
Repeat on the other side. Take the outer point of your left wing and fold it over to the top right point of your wing. Line the sides up and create a crease along the fold. Then, unfold it.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Creating the Final Form of Your Dog

1
Fold the wings back over at the same time. This time, you're going to fold the wings back over, but you'll need to do it at the same time. This will cause your pencil to come together, creating the shape of the front of an airplane. Then, fold your airplane over to the right side so that the bottom of it is parallel to a flat surface.
2
Fold your airplane underneath your shape. After you have folded it to the side, fold your airplane under, at the top part of the airplane. After you have folded it under, it should be upside down, behind your shape. Then, fold your front shape over so that the right point of the triangle at the top of your shape meets the left point. Create a crease at the fold.^{[9]
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3
Open up your airplane. Looking at your airplane as it is upside down. Ignoring the rest of your shape, you should see 3 triangles in it. Take the middle triangle (it should be pointing upwards while the others are pointing down) and fold it so that the base of the triangle meets the rest of your shape. Flip your shape over and repeat on the opposite side.
- Essentially, take the bottom right corner of your triangle and bring it towards the top point of your shape. You won't be able to reach the top point, but you should be about 1 inch (2.5 cm) off, depending on the size of square you began with.
4
Create your dog's head. Flip your shape back over so that your airplane is on the right side of your shape and is pointing upwards. Then, take the middle triangle on your airplane and fold it so that the middle (height) of the triangle comes in line with the top of your airplane. Flip your shape over and do the same thing on the other side -- have the middle of the middle triangle line up with the top of your airplane.^{[10]
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5
Admire your hard work! After you have made all of your folds, turn your shape so that it looks like a dog. The folds you just created made the dog's head, with the very front of your airplane creating the dog's snout. Then, the rest of your shape should form the dog's legs. You should have 1 shape directly underneath your dog's head that forms its front legs, and then the second shape forms its back legs and tail.

Expert Q&A
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Question

Can I use computer paper if I don't have origami paper?

Lois Wade
wikiHow Crafts Expert
Lois Wade has 45 years of experience in crafts including sewing, crochet, needlepoint, cross-stitch, drawing, and paper crafts. She has been contributing to craft articles on wikiHow since 2007.

Lois Wade

wikiHow Crafts Expert

Expert Answer

Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert answer.

Yes! Take one corner, then fold the short edge of the paper down and line it up along the longest edge. Once that diagonal is folded, you can cut off the excess paper for a perfect square.
Question

Is there a video to this?

Community Answer

There probably is, just go on YouTube and look it up. It may not be this one, but they're out there.
Question

Do I need origami paper, or can I use the normal paper?

Community Answer

As long as it's a square, it should be completely fine.