It was originally described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1753 work Species Plantarum.

German botanist Carl Ludwig Willdenow transferred it to the genus Peltigera in 1787.

Peltigera canina has a brown to brownish-grey thallus when dry.

The upper surface of the lobes, which generally measure 10–25 mm (0.4–1.0 in) across, have a fuzzy tomentum, especially near the margins.

The lichen typically grows on soil, in woodlands, fields, and sandy areas[3] The cyanobiont Nostoc associates with Peltigera canina, and resembles the species N. sphaericum and N. punctiforme.