The work was derived from Our Fighting Forces, which also served as the source for other military dog paintwork by Lichtenstein.

The Lichtenstein foundation notes that the inspiration for this painting is a frame of Our Fighting Forces #66 (February 1962), which was published by National Periodical Publications (now DC Comics).

is derived from what Guggenheim Senior Curator Susan Davidson calls a "low-grade comic strip" that is a typical Lichtenstein source, it is representative of Lichtenstein's fascination with "the atomic language of Ben-Day dots, black outlines and the three primary colors as the elementary vocabulary of low-budget commercial imagery.

"[9] According to Jennifer Blessing of the Guggenheim, "There is also an element of humor in creating fine art out of what has customarily been considered 'low,' a playfulness that is equally evident in the onomatopoeic caption and bellicose expression of the dog in Grrrrrrrrrrr!!

"[10] In 1962, Lichtenstein created Arrrrrff!, an oil and graphite pencil on canvas painting depicting a dog from a subsequent issue of Our Fighting Forces, the series that was the source of Grrrrrrrrrrr!!