OWEN WILSON has made sure his latest movie is a real family affair. Not only do the Texan actor’s parents appear in new film Marley & Me, but his Australian cattle dog Garcia also makes his debut in the feel-good tale.

The film, based on the best-selling memoir by journalist John Grogan, is all about family – and dogs. It follows John and Jenny Grogan through the various stages of their life, from marriage and moving to Florida, to career promotion and childbirth.

The one constant in their relationship is a labrador called Marley, who they describe as "the worst dog in the world".

He chews everything in sight, turns an obedience class into mayhem and howls like fury whenever there’s a thunderstorm.

You’d think most actors would politely decline such a script, but perhaps Owen and his co-star Jennifer Aniston had never heard the old adage about never working with children or animals.

"We grew up with dogs," 40-year- old Owen explains.

"My family’s first dog was a dalmatian named Nutmeg, but our main dog growing up was a chocolate brown labrador called Blue. He could swim to the bottom of pools and retrieve golf balls, it was his special trick. He could hold his breath."

Marley ages 13 years in the film, so 22 different labradors were needed to play him. Incredibly, none of the dogs were trained to do anything other than normal dog behaviour – and the more badly they behaved the better.

"Clyde was the main dog who played Marley and he was pretty consistent about misbehaving and doing bad stuff," says Owen, with a cheeky glint in his blue eyes.

"He also came to the premiere in Amsterdam. They said that was Clyde, but I’m not sure..."

Owen admits it was strange having to take his cue from whatever Clyde and his colleagues did or didn’t do on screen – and often the dogs’ best takes were the one that got used in the film.