For a child psychologist:
I have an above average 5 year old daughter (she could read at 3 1/2)
who plays dog most of the day.
She even plays dog most of the day at school and when her friends play
superheros, she is "superdog". When visiting her friend who has a dog
they play dog with the dog!
Is it normal play to be stuck on one character so much? We have said
she could have a dog at 6 years old. I wonder of this is her way of
dealing with some kind of anxiety over getting a dog next year, or if
she is so excited that she just loves to be a dog. She does not
confuse reality and we can ask her to be a person to set the table,
etc but it sure would be nice to have a girl, not a puppy once in a
while.
Thanks for any help!
Mike

I went through a very similar phase when I was a youngster: I was a
pony for about a year and a half. I neighed, I whickered, I tried a
two-legged simulation of a trot and a gallop, I did many things that I
thought ponies did. I even ate grass occasionally.

Then one day I wasn't a pony any more. My grandmother was puzzled. She
said "Where's that pony girl?" And I really didn't know. But the pony
in me had gone.

Perhaps this is a wonderful opportunity for you and her to author a
children's book about a superdog.  : )

Best regards,
journalist-ga

At a younger age, my elder daughter had an imaginary friend called 'Jumper'. 

She even insisted that a place should be set at the table for him.

Eventually, he went away, never to be heard of again.

I understand that this is not unusual.

Who knows what goes on in a kiddy's mind?

Chances are that she is missing her father

Not missing her dad, We are a two parent family and I am the stay at
home dad. Thanks for the idea though.
Mike

Like Pink, I spent at least two years as an Equinus sapien, as did my
best friend, when we were 5-6 years old, before we could be trusted
with real horses.  I would chalk it up to a very fertile imagination,
which is wonderful...

ts

After a visit to an agricultural college open day and seeing some
pigs, I wanted to be a pig (or I wanted to have a pig, I kind of
changed between the two).

As long as your 'puppy' is housetrained, I wouldn't worry too much.