Great Dane Dog Breed
Dog Breeds
Great Dane Quick Facts
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Introduction
The Great Dane has been known by many names, including the Deutsche Dogge, the Grand Danois (an old French designation meaning “big Danish,” the Dogue Allemand (French for “German Mastiff”), the Ulm Dog, the Ulmer Dogge, the Ulmer Mastiff, the Boarhound, the Danish Dog, the English Dogge, the Tiger Dog, the Tiger Mastiff, the Grand Danois, the Brosse Dogge, the Hetzreude, the Saufanger, the Fanghund, the Kammerhunde (“Chamber Dog”), the Liebhunde (“Life Dog”), the Gentle Giant and simply the Dane. It is an enormous breed that has been cultivated as a distinct type for hundreds of years. No none knows why the English adopted a French name for this truly German breed, nor is there any known association between the origin or development of Great Danes and the country of Denmark. Whatever its given name, great size was never enough to make the “Apollo of dogs” a suitable representative of his distinguished breed; he always needed elegance, beauty, courage, nobility, speed and stamina, as well as a gentle, reliable disposition. The Great Dane was recognized by the American Kennel Club in 1887, as a member of its Working Group.
The mature male Great Dane should not be less than 30 inches at the shoulder but is preferred to be over 32 inches in height. Adult females should not stand less than 28 inches at the shoulder but are preferred to be over 30 inches in height. There is no upper height limit. Danes vary widely in weight but typically range between 100 and 170 pounds. Their short, glossy coat is very easy to care for. Danes come in a range of colors, including black, blue, brindle, fawn, harlequin and mantle. They also come in white or mostly white and merle, which are accepted for AKC registration, breeding and participation in performance events but are not eligible for conformation competition. Great Danes may be shown with cropped or natural ears in the American show ring. However, many countries no longer permit showing with cropped ears, and natural ears are slowly gaining favor with many breed fanciers.
The exact age of the Great Dane breed is not known, but it is likely that close ancestors of the breed have existed for thousands of years. There are drawings of dogs resembling the Great Dane on Egyptian monuments dating to 3000 B.C. Early written descriptions of similar dogs were found in Chinese literature of 1121 B.C. These ancestral Danes were less refined than those seen today – heavier in build and bred for ferocity
The Great Dane is an enormous breed that has been cultivated as a distinct type of dog for hundreds of years. Great Danes originated in Germany and perhaps in England (there is no known connection with Denmark), and were bred to hunt the savage European wild boar. This took a powerful, intelligent, tenacious and fearless dog, and the Great Dane’s personality and breed characteristics suited him perfectly to this task. However, size and beauty alone
Great Danes are very large, elegant and muscular dogs. They stand upwards of 30 inches at the shoulders and weigh anywhere from 120 to 150 pounds. The Great Dane comes in several colors inclughing fawn, brindle, black, blue, harlequin or mantle. Though they are massive dogs, they should be square in proportion, with the length of the body matching the height. They have rectangular heads. They have high-set ears of medium size, which are often
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