Introduction:

Originating in Germany and are one of the largest breeds in the world. Great Danes are working dogs known for their large heads and muzzles, long tails and tall stature. Descending from Middle Ages where they were used to hunt boar or deer and guard nobility. Evidence of Great Danes goes back as far as 1121 BC in china. Two types of doggy descendants make these beautiful giants, Mastiffs and Greyhounds.  Charlotte Deaves

The Great Dane is a giant breed from Germany and are classed as a type of working dog known for their tall structure.

A big brave handsome breed that love humans and carry the name as a velcro dog! Max Clarke

Keywords: velcro dog, big and brave, loving, loyal, affectionate, intelligent, majestic, goofy

Traits: considered gentle giants, they are playful, extremely affectionate and are good with children. They can be known to be stubborn and always always love a cuddle!! They are very loyal breed and protective of their owners and home. Despite their goofy expressions Danes are highly intelligent and are capable of learning up to 250 gestures and words. Once the initial puppy phase has gone they are a very calm breed that love nothing more then to chill on sofa with you. Being short haired means they are light shedding. They tend to not like the rain so toilet training in rain is always an up hill challenge. Charlotte Deaves

Exercise: 

As long as Great Danes have space to do zoomies they are content with 1-2 hours exercise each day,  but also adapt to your lifestyle and are happy to do lots more or less. Maxine Clarke

Its a given that a dog of this size needs lots of exercise!!! This being said you must also be so careful with dane puppies as over walking them at a young age can give them joint problems later on in life. Once fully grown they do need up to 2+ hours a day (every dane is different) but shouldn’t be forced as one solo walk…they are carrying a lot of weight around with them and you must give them chance to rest regularly, from personal experience I have found your dane will tell you when they have had enough. As for exercising dane pups I have found off lead play is best form of stimulation, they are able to chose their own pace and also helps with mental stimulation. Walking dane pups the general recommendation is 5 mins per month old so a 6month old pup should be walked for only 30 mins in one sitting. Charlotte Deaves

Piccies of Aria below…

Health:

With such giant frames they understandably suffer joint and bone diseases e.g osteoarthritis, hip dysplasia and arthritis. Same as several other giant breeds Danes can suffer from gastric torsion (bloat) which can be life threatening if not treated urgently. They can also suffer from cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle that leads to enlargement of the heart. Thyroid issues are also not uncommon within the breed, hypothyroidism, which luckily is easily managed with medication. Addisons disease can also affect your dane, where the adrenal glands in kidneys are under producing necessary hormones, the condition isn’t curable but hormone replacement therapy has been associated with making symptoms more manageable.  Charlotte Deaves

Food and costs:

As expected they have a healthy appetite with Clarkson as a puppy eating 1.6kg of raw food a day which will settle to around 2.5kg a day once fully grown 

Average life expectancy:

Lifespan varies from 8-10 years depending on health. Like all breeds this can vary, we lost our first great dane "Boo" at 3 and half :-(. 

Average weight:

Once fully grown a Great Dane average weight is 63-80kg and stands anything from 30 inches upwards in height (Boo was 37 inches)

Why you will never have another breed again: It’s hard to put into words just how fantastic this breed is, until you have one in your life you will never fully understand. Their unfaltering loyalty and unconditional love is all anybody could ever want from a dog. They love being close with you its like having your own personal dane shaped shadow following you!! They are the perfect storm if you don’t mind living in a bit of chaos. Charlotte Deaves

Comparison to other breeds: When compared to border collies they are just as intelligent but as Danes suffer from separation anxiety it makes it more difficult to train them to do commands away from you. If compared to German Shepherds, the great dane will do better in social situations and be more calm and gentle. Charlotte Deaves

Ups of breed:

They are so so so loving, they love to be close to you and despite their size will always consider themselves as lapdogs. They are naturally very inquisitive so you will never have a dull moment. As they are such a laid back breed they are perfect for adapting to changing environments and love a lazy day on the sofa. Their unfaltering loyalty makes them guardians of your home and family. They will lean into you to show you they love you and males have often been known to take people by the hands and lead them too places or away from the front door when they know they are being left behind. Highly motivated by food makes them easy to train providing you are willing to put the work and time in….you get out what you put in with this breed!! Charlotte Deaves

-Danes have low prey drive

-Love being with their humans

-lap dogs

-good with children

-highly intelligent

-light shedding

Max Clarke

Downs of breed:

Happy tail syndrome. Sounds like it should be a positive but this is a condition where the dog causes damage to the tip of the tail from striking surfaces its easily treatable but often is a recurring condition. The slobber is real….and so is the gas!! They are fairly clumsy and will break things in your home, the short life span is another massive down side to this breed. Some Danes can become dominate or territorial if not socialised correctly, but this is a given for most dog breeds. They are very expensive to maintain, higher vet bills, higher insurance and they most definitely eat more than an average sized dog. Often prone to suffer from separation anxiety, this requires early crate training and essential alone time, as tempting as it is to have your pup by your side all the time it is crucial for their development and health that you start this training as soon as possible. Charlotte Deaves

-Once you have a great dane your house will never be free from slobber!, you will never sleep alone again and will defo have to invest in a large sofa as they think they are lap dogs!

-Unless raw fed get ready to take a shovel and wheelie bin on walks for the toilet stops

-Health issues as above

Max Clarke

Personal Stories 

Clarkson is our 2nd dane and is only 17 weeks at the moment.

Clarkson at 8 weeks weighed just 5.2kg and at 17 weeks is 25kg. The first year of life they grow every day!! As they do grow fast 5 minutes per month of life is the best way to caculate exercise on a lead to insure growth happens safely..

Socialise is a must with Danes and  firm constant training gets positive results

They have a short coat which isn’t really designed for outside so a collection of jumpers and coats is a must as they are classed as an indoors dog!

We got our  first Dane "Boo" when he was 10 weeks old, rescued from a dark cold shed where he had no human interaction apart from rest of litter,  Unfortunately even after lots of training and help from behavourists Boo still ended up with fear reaction to anyone outside the home, again so socialise from a very early age. Boo was however the most loving dog i have ever had the pleasure of knowing when he was in his safe place with just myself and husband, he is where our love for Danes has come from.

Clarkson  at 17 weeks now is doing great alongside with our 3yr old german shepherd and our little cat ( as Danes have low prey drive they are very happy to share their home)

Here are some photos of our boys

Maxine Clarke