So far, mine's worth the money but it's only a year and a half old. It has a strong suction and isn't cumbersome to handle.

I have a Dyson Aminal and yes it is worth every single penny. I've had it at least five years, don't remember exactly.

I bought mine new from a vacuum seller on eBay several years ago. I have three dogs, and all I can say is that it's wonderful. If you know anyone who has one, vacuum your rugs with YOUR vacuum and then try theirs on it. You'll be surprised at the additional 'stuff' that the Dyson will pull out.

Worth every penny with 2 dogs and 2 cats. However, my brother purchased the ridiculously expensive Dyson hand vac and it's the least effective of the 4 hand vacs we own. The best is the Sears Shark we've had for years.
Dee

Previously I had a Hoover vacuum and hated it. It would constantly lose suction and the container would fill up in 1/2 a room. I replaced it with the Dyson Animal and I am extremely satisfied. My German Shepherd (and frequent visiting dogs) shed all over my house (it's a constant battle) and the Dyson really sucks up the hair and dirt incredibly well. I still have to empty the vacuum container frequently (depending on how recently I vacuumed and if the dog is blowing her seasonal coat), but not as much as the Hoover. In fact, shortly after getting the vacuum my brother came over and asked "Did you get new carpet?".

My parents also have a Shepherd and have some sort of bagged vacuum that they love. Maybe a Miele? So far they seem just as happy with that as I am with my Dyson.

Five years.

Absolutely love it.

I bought one for my mother, also.

We have had a Dyson animal for maybe three or four years and it works great. My only complaint is that it's kind of heavy, so it's kind of a pain going up and down stairs.

We've had our Dyson for four years and love it. Got the small, hand-held one as a gift and that's been great, too. We love it -- no complaints at all.

I had the Dyson Animal for about two years before Katrina destroyed it. Now I have another Dyson which Target had on sale (yellow DC07 all floors) and it is good too, even without all the extra attachments. Great suction, and I have two sloppy parrots throwing food and molting tiny feathers.

Lately with all the construction going on here, remodelling, I've used my Dh's shopvac from Harbor Freight to take care of the heavy stuff. I'm impressed at the way it picks up the pieces of plaster and sawdust too. It has bags which I simply toss away afterward. Not as elegant as a house vacuum, but it sure is effective for heavy stuff.

I also have a Dyson Animal...and got it on sale for a hundred off a few years ago. I am a color matchy matchy person and I got it because it was purple and matched my other cleaning items...LOL. Great buy, it works so well, is easy to empty, I am glad I don't have to use bags any more. Easy to use and store.

Another Dyson here - I have three of them, two uprights and a canister. The oldest is 7 years old and still going strong. If you go to buy your Dyson at an independent vacuum store, be prepared for some trash talk. Users love Dysons, vacuum cleaner salesmen hate them.

I have had a Dyson Animal for almost three years and love it. I do agree with some others that it is heavy. I feel I get my upper arm workout when I go up and down the stairs.

Another Dyson fan. We bought ours 4-5 years ago when we had carpet everywhere and 2 shedding Shelties. (Dyson Animal.) The shelties have since passed on and we have hardwood floors and 2 non-shedding shih-tzus.

So now it's kind of overkill. But I still love it!

Have had Dyson Animal for 5 years, it is wonderful.
I have 2 large labrador retrievers that shed all year. Fills up that container pretty quick and so easy to empty out and clean. Has great suction, use cleaning tools a lot. I don't notice it being any more awkward or heavy on the stairs than any other vacuum I've had through the years. Haven't had to have it serviced either. Would buy again. If it ever dies.

I have a Oreck but I wish I would of bought the Dyson.

Dyson Animal vacuum lover here. With two labs and 3 outdoor and 1 indoor cats, there's alot of hair. The Dyson is awesome IMHO. I'd never go back to any of my prior vacuums.

Just my $.02

Funny you posted this as just yesterday I was vaccuuming and I said to my husband that I will NEVER EVER buy another brand of vaccuum again....my vacs will always be a DYson.

Hands down worth every penny. With Dyson you have confidence that you are truly cleaning your floors and there is a trust in the product as it is so well put together..made to stand the test of time.

I do recommend any new buyers get the 'ball' version as the earlier model is pretty heavy.

Thanks to all of you who've related your experiences here. Makes me think...over the years we've had shelties, labradors, parrots, and cats. Obviously, I missed out by not getting a Dyson a long time ago! Today as empty nesters, we still have 2 cats, and I think that's justification enough for having a Dyson around the house.

We have a Dyson Animal. Three big, furrrrry cats and three year later I still love it. :)

I have an older Dyson that is very good about getting up all the dog hair that we seem to have floating around every day. It's amazing that my dog has any fur left on his body!

I've been using it on my new tung-oiled wood floors, but I'm worried it might cause scratches even though I use the bare floor option. Does anyone with a Dyson have experience in using it on wood floors?

I have a Dyson DC-18 and I love, love, love it. Worth every penny and if it broke I'd replace it exactly. It's a smaller, lighter weight model and it's loaded with power. I got it because I'm not getting younger and it's easy to pick up and haul around, plus it doesn't take up as much closet space as the bigger ones. I've never regretted picking the smaller one.

Juddgirl, yes, I use it on my wood floors. I just switch off the beater bar and it hasn't scratched a thing (not even when I forgot to switch it off).

We have a Dyson ball that we've had for about 3 years now. It is so worth every penny!

Embrassment: thinking our carpets were clean, until we had just vacuumed with the previous vac, then immediately vacuumed with the Dyson, and saw how much crap it pulled right out.

Carpet feels cleaner and softer after using it for a while, too.

We took it to a friend's to use, she has a high end central vac system, and the Dyson was immediately pulling goobers out of her carpet...