Getting a Great Dane tomorrow...

[MTG#10]

I haven't had a big dog in about a decade. Anyone here have any experience with Great Danes? I've read they dont typically live as long as other breeds and vet bills can get ridiculous but I've wanted one since I was a little kid.

[Trivers]

Originally Posted by ForeverChiefs58

This isn’t quite right. I’ve bred and trained Great Danes for years. I breed and train Blue Great Danes now. I have never encountered a dumb Great Dane. There might be plenty out there, but all that I have bred or interacted with are very smart.

It is true they are a very, very loving and loyal dog. I think that makes them much easier to train, because they really want so bad to make you happy.

I’ve also trained yellow labs and find many similarities between the two in training because of some of those same traits.

Very true that they also don’t know they are that big and instinctively will sit on a couch or your lap.

They can get hit by cars easier. Like a deer, sometimes if they are in a street, they might stop and look at a car.

Their stomachs can flip with large chest cavity, but just as seen in the movie “Marley and Me”, it happens in other breeds as well.

My vet bill for my Danes isn’t any more than the vet bills for my Labrador. I take them in at the same time, and they get the same shots.

They usually live around 10-15 years. In their later years, some can develop hip or bone problems, not untypical in such a larger dog, but a lot of that can be passed on through breeding. So, always check the dogs history, and make sure parents and grandparents on both sides are good.

I used to breed Harlequins 25 years ago. Harlequins are white with black spots.

If a Harlequin is born and doesn’t have a black spot anywhere on its head, then it will be blind and deaf. Those are usually put down at birth. I kept one once that had a spot on its neck. It ended up still being blind and deaf, but was very, very smart and I surprisingly was still able to find it a good home.

It is why Dalmatians are fire truck dogs. The siren doesn’t hurt their ears like other dogs.

Hope this help

Great post!

We have had 4 GDs over the years.

Absolutely love them. Big, smart, and little kids proof.

We recently lost one to cancer. Looking for a female Harlequin. Does not have to have papers.

BTW, Rainmain has great picture of him with ours. If if he chooses to share, you will enjoy it.

[Naptown Chief]

Originally Posted by dwwataz

My bad. I knew Danes were susceptible to blindness/deafness and thought it was the white gene like in some other breeds. Didn't realize it was the harlequins, which is a STUNNING color on them.

I guess I should clarify.. By dumb I more or less meant oafy and clumsy. Bull in a China shop type thing and being about 150lbs heavier than they think they are.

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Training video:



Moar training:

[ForeverChiefs58]

Originally Posted by dwwataz

I guess I should clarify.. By dumb I more or less meant oafy and clumsy. Bull in a China shop type thing and being about 150lbs heavier than they think they are.

Yes, very Scooby-dooish.

Our vet sits next to train tracks, and she says it is common for Danes to jump in owners laps when train goes by

[Shag]

Originally Posted by ForeverChiefs58

They usually live around 10-15 years. In their later years, some can develop hip or bone problems, not untypical in such a larger dog, but a lot of that can be passed on through breeding. So, always check the dogs history, and make sure parents and grandparents on both sides are good.

You sure about that life span? All research I've ever done, and every vet I've talked to (including 2 close friends), indicate 6-10 years. 10-15 years would be more likely for your lab.

Great dogs, but the life span has always scared me away.

[ForeverChiefs58]

Originally Posted by Shag

You sure about that life span? All research I've ever done, and every vet I've talked to (including 2 close friends), indicate 6-10 years. 10-15 years would be more likely for your lab.

I have lost one at 8. Lost another at 10. But know several that are still alive at 12, 13 and 14.

10-15 was just a number I said from my own experience, and can definitely vary. I know a few that have lost around 6, but 3 of those were being struck by cars.

My female that died at 8 I had put down. It was heartbreaking, and she could have probably lived a couple more years, but was in pain daily.

My vet told me breeding them takes some off their life. I had bred her, took them to dog shows, and paid my own way through college. And I learned a lot from it.

A female goes into cycle every 6 months. Having 8-12 puppies on average, each one the size of a long neck bottle, 12 inches long, sure takes a lot out of them.

She should rest the cycle after having puppies, so only giving birth once a year.

Be sure and ask breeder about parents and grandparents health and history.
Most people are looking for a spawn of that. How old were they when they died? What did they die from? Is it hereditary?

A good vet can help you so much as well.

If looking for a pet only, you can get it cheaper than buying for a show breeder. Many breeders sell cheaper as pets and require the dog to be fixed. It is the exact same with the show bloodline, only spayed or neutered.

[ForeverChiefs58]

The first litter I had she had 18 puppies.

Pretty crazy.

[tooge]

How are your knees? I think Danes are pretty tall but you will probably have to get on your knees to suck it off. Guy like you should get a little dog

[ForeverChiefs58]

I just looked up George the worlds biggest Great Dane.

He is a Blue Great Dane and weighed 250 pounds, which is crazy. He lived to be 8, or one month shy of 8.

That is the biggest one in the world though.

I googled it and it says their ave lifespan is 8-10.

Of course it could be a little longer or shorter, but is the ave. Many age problems can be genitic as well, and a vet can better guide you through that as well.

Had a Boston, or now called Mantles, develop hip problems when it got older and my vet blamed his genetics. But there wasn’t any history of hip problems anywhere in family history. I believe he died around 10.

The best dog I ever had I sold when he was two. The guy insisted on getting him fixed first. He got a blood clot during surgery that passed through his heart and he died. I was told that was very rare. Didn’t suck any less.

[tooge]

All joking aside, here are a few considerations. I have a very large dog (swiss mountain dog), and so these are things to know with ultra large dogs. Mine weighs about 140lbs.
1. Feeding them is expensive
2. They pee large quantities of piss, it will kill your grass
3. Giant poops. Have a place to throw lots of shit
4. If you go out of town, it costs more to board them at some places, and friends don't generally offer up to watch them at their place due to the sheer size of them.
5. Shortened life span. 10 years would be really long

Having said the above, I love having an enormous dog. When they sit by you on the couch or on your lap it's pretty calming. Also, when people come to the door and hear THAT bark, it's intimidating. Good luck

[ForeverChiefs58]

Originally Posted by tooge

How are your knees? I think Danes are pretty tall but you will probably have to get on your knees to suck it off. Guy like you should get a little dog

You seem nice. Lol


I had a male was being studded out. Before someone pays for your male to breed with their female, they want to know the male’s sperm is good.

You take it to a vet and they get his sperm and test it.

I asked him how he got it, he has a tech jerk it off.

If that wasn’t surprising enough, I couldn’t believe they only charged $25 bucks to do it lol

[Dayze]

the roommate of a relative of mine had a Dane. he was awesome. as others have described in here; he was clumsy, happy go lucky, and thought he was a small dog. he would sit on the couch like a person, with his front paws on the ground .

super lovey and snuggly. he would 'snuggle' in on top of you while sitting next to you on the couch.

[ChiefBlueCFC]

PLEASE POST PICTURES WHEN YOU GET YOUR DOGGGG!!!

[ChiefBlueCFC]

SORRY I SHOULD'VE MADE THE FONT LARGER, PLEASE POST PICTURES OF YOUR DOG

[burt]

Originally Posted by Hog's Gone Fishin

Sorry, I like Dane. He calls me an asshole and I call him a douchebag and we go on

A bit pompous....but I like the hell outta him...