I know lighting is annoying with dogs, as said, my dog isn't the posing kind. If I'm using standard autofocus, my camera tends to get confused with the black fur, and focus on a patch of fur. I try and focus a bit more specifically using the center spot, but even when my dog is sat still she is constantly moving her head.
The good in focus shots I have, have bad angles for the head. The shots I have where the head and ears are in the perfect position, it's blurry. I guess just more patience then and try more shots?
My dog was wet, one of the pictures shows her in a pond. However, the wet fur with the sun shining on it often came out incredibly sharp and detailed, the problem there is that the dogs head and eyes weren't in focus.
My dog is young, and doesn't stay still for very long.