Dog photography

That's pretty sad, loosing a dog is very tough, been there. Couple of things to consider - try to entertain the dog/engage him into something he loves to do, like catching frisbee, tennis ball, etc.;  it's easier if you get some help from your friend. As Alejandro already suggested, get low, it always works well when shooting dogs. For camera settings I typically use: AF-C, AF-ON button constantly pressed down for tracking, main button for release, dynamic area AF - 21 or 51 points (depends on how far/close you are).  Most often I use 24-70, 17-55 at 55 also should work, try to stop down to 4-5.6 to get enough DOF. Below are few snaps using these settings (last one is with an old 50/1.8D and heavily processed).

Good luck!