The state, quality, or condition of being a dog; the period or stage of a dog's life.
From 'dog' plus the suffix '-hood,' which forms nouns indicating state or condition (as in 'childhood,' 'manhood,' 'priesthood'). The '-hood' suffix ultimately derives from Old English 'had' meaning 'person' or 'condition.'
The suffix '-hood' is one of the oldest productive suffixes in English, and it says something interesting that we feel compelled to name the 'state of being a dog' separately from just calling it 'being a dog.'
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