Great Dane

A Great Dane is commonly called the gentle giant of the dog world and  rightly so. It has the perfect temperament to be a suitable . Due to their formidable size, it is safe to call them one of the world’s tallest dog breeds. In fact, the current record holder of the tallest dog in the world as per the Guinness World Record is held by Zeus, a Great Dane in the United States. Some even call them Apollo because of their presence in ancient Roman as depicted upon coins and scriptures.

This Tall lanky breed belongs to Germany. A number of people confuse this breed of having Dutch origins because of the word, Dane in its name but it is originally from Germany where it was called the large dog. The primary purpose of this breed was to hunt boars. And for the purpose of hunting boars, the Great Dane had to be strong and powerful. This made this breed quite strong and powerful which is unlike the great boars of today. Hints about its existence has been present since the year 3000 BC in Egypt. This breed has had gentleness and homeliness bred into it. This breed was supremely aggressive but as hunting of boars were stopped, they had to be trained to be gentle and kind. One of the most famous Great Dane was Scooby doo, the cartoon? The reason why Scooby Doo was a Great Dane is because this breed, and freakishly so is known to ward off evil spirits. While picking up Great Dane for playing Scooby Doo, the criteria of a large cowardly dog was picked up. Great Dane’s are not the largest breed out there, the largest breed are Irish Bloodhound. Though the largest dog in the world was a Great Dane known as Zeus. This breed is also known as the Gentle giant as they go against their appearance of being scary and intimidating. This breed often seeks physical affection from their owners and loves cuddling up to them. This breed loves protecting its owners as can be seen in the case of Julian who peed on a bomb one time to stop it from exploding and the other time alerted the authorities of a raging fire in the owners place. There was another Great Dane who joined the Navy, known as Just Nuisance. The navy got the dog enlisted so that it could ride on the train with them. It was also given a naval burial. The official dog of the state of Pennsylvania is the Great Dane. This breed is one of the fasted growing breeds, it puts on weight and height like a miracle. This breed makes it to the top 20 list of the most popular breeds and it can live wherever. It is non fussy about its accommodations and can be suited to live wherever. This breed has the best genes among dogs, it’s a mix of the Irish wolfhound, the mastiff and Greyhounds.

Do not be alarmed by their demeanour and size. The tallest dog breed is also one of the most loving temperaments you will choose to share space with. Although, with great stature comes great costs; they are likely to knock down a objects in their way including the young humans and the frail-bodied. This issues is of course with no intent of the dog in doing so; being extremely attached to their immediate human pack, that is their families.

The Great Dane was a hunting dog, it was developed as a mix breed of three powerful breeds so that it could hunt boars and other wild animals. At that time hunting the English Boar was a matter of great prestige and there was this breed specially bred to make the sport better. This breed is an intelligent breed which led the nobleman of England take this breed as a guarding breed.

In comparison, The Great Dane today is a breed which is fairly docile, domesticized and friendly. It has a German Lineage but it was bred in England as well. The name Great Dane or Grand Donois was given to the breed by a French Naturalist though it has no resemblance or similarity with anything Dutch, the name surprisingly stuck. They are also referred to as German Mastiff or Detuche Dogge. There are imprints and Images of creatures which highly resemble the Great Dane in ancient Greece. These imprints were seen and discovered till as late as the Hermeneutics era. Around the 16th century, people started transporting dogs who were a mix of the English Mastiff and Irish wolfhound, this mix breed was long legged and were just referred to as the English dog. This breed wasn’t found in abundance but was rather rare and was just kept around when a Nobel or a highly influential man wanted it out of hobby or luxury. It was at one point globally called the German mastiff but later it was known as Great Dane again because of the increasing tensions between Germany and other countries. This breed was also the national dog of Germany around 1876. The Great Dane arrived in the United States in around mid-1800 by William Buffalo Bill. It was recognized by the American Kennel club around 1887.

The Great Dane is known to be first bred and recorded around the 16th Century in Europe, however scriptures of an almost identical dog have been revealed dating back to about 3,000 B.C. The most likely originators of this dog are known to be English Mastiff and Irish Wolfhound. Also known as 'German Mastiff', it is still quite a mystery where the name 'Great Dane' came to be. The Romans have a known affiliated culture where this dog was kept to ward off evil spirits.

This humungous dog was bred to hunt wild boar while being a companion dog. They were even used as war dogs because of their size and guarding instincts. However, the intensity and aggression was eventually bred out over the span of a century when the English Greyhound was added for a more mellow temperament. Germany named this monstrous but friendly beast as their National Dog in 1876.

There are many giant-sized dog breeds today and in fact the Irish Wolfhound is their fiercest rival when it comes to height comparison. But what sets them apart from other giant dogs is their own perception! Most people will obviously not miss out their towering presence but what is much more evident is their puppy behaviour till about 3 years of age, when they start maturing as a dog. 

When they are about 12 months of age, they are already almost bigger than a 5-year old human. During the entire time they are growing, they seem to be completely oblivious of their size and presence. Hence, knocking down anything and everything in the way is a common occurrence. What's more ironic is that they feel they are better lap dogs than the Chihuahuas and the French Bulldogs of the world. Many a times, their gesture of affection would be to sit on a humans lap. 

Fun Trivia

Great Dane has been portrayed in various comics and movies as a loveable and docile pet. We bring to you some famous Great Danes that have been stars in movies and the celebrities that you share your giant with.

Movie Characters

Marmaduke and Scooby Doo are lovable comic strips featuring Great Danes that are known for their clumsiness. These strips have been made into movies and the Great Danes have been the stars in these movies. This breed was also a part of the Original Disney movie The Ugly Dachshund. In addition to this there is Back to God’s Country and Head over Heels.

Celebrity Great Dane owners

Great Danes have been a part of the White House under the reign of Fraklin D. Roosevelt and have caught the fancy of various celebrities such as Greg Louganis, Tom Mix, Jim Carey and Mark Sennett. Closer home, this giant breed dog was owned by Amitabh Bachchan and was called Shanouk.

Vital Stats:

Dog Breed Group: Working Dogs

Height: 35-43 Inches

Weight: 50-90 Kg

Life Span: 9 to 10 years

Great Dane Maintenance & Effort

Grooming a Great Dane is not much of a task, their short hair coat do not need much effort in grooming. Even the baths required are not too often as it would not be easy to drag this giant pet of yours to the tub for a bath. The shedding for this short haired giant dog is not much but you will have to remember that they are larger dogs hence the surface area is more so you will see hair lying around everywhere in the house.

The Great Dane isn’t a breed that needs to be bathe regularly rather it should be bathe according to the need. Over bathing will lead to loss of essential oils from the skin of the breed. The Great Dane sheds hair like any average breed. Generally the Great Dane when suffering from any major health problems starts shedding more. The Great Dane also has dry skin. There should be regular cleaning of the ear so that it doesn’t suffer from any infections per say. It is important to clean the air canal of the breed. Teeth are easier to clean and maintain of the Great Dane. The Nails should be trimmed and kept short.

There are approximately 6 coat colors which are recognized by the Kennel Club, they are fawn, brindle, black, harqueline, mantle and blue. There are other colors too but they are generally not acceptable. The coat of the Great Dane maintainable as shedding is not too much. The breed should be checked for regular checkups, they should be checked for patches, red sores etc.

Your Great Dane will also require regular care to maintain its oral hygiene and clean its ears regularly to prevent infections. The easiest way is to brush it with a rubber hound mitt and a soft bristle on a weekly basis. One of the areas that require immediate care is your dog’s paws and nails. A split toenail or splinter can be serious concern in your pet. Just look at this in another way. If a small breed steps on a sharp object there will be prick in the paw that can be easily treated but because of its weight the Great Dane it will exert a larger pressure and that can result in a gush in the paw, which can pose a problem for it to walk. The nails should be trimmed regularly.

Feeding and Nutrition

It is important to keep a check on feeding and nutrition requirements of the breeds as a balanced diet and sufficient nutrition helps the breed in fighting diseases and live a longer healthier life. A Great Dane should be kept slim and fit as an overweight puppy can encounter diseases more likely. The levels of protein should be monitored while feeding the Great Dane. The levels of Protein in the diet of Great Dane shouldn’t be more than 24% and the level of fat shouldn’t be more than 14%. Proper protein amount will prevent the breed from running into health problems such as Pano and Wobblers Syndrome. A Male Great Dane should be fed 4-8 cups of food which should be split between 3 servings, this is applicable to the puppies. Females should also roughly get the same amount of food. This should be increased slightly when the breed is olden that is between 8 to 12 months old. Adolescent Danes should be fed more, approximately between 8-15 cups depending upon the gender of the breed.  An average Great Dane requires roughly 2500 calories per day. This breed is generally fed more than any other breeds.