Great Danes were bred to pull heavy loads of meat when fresh meat, before refrigeration, could only be held in a store for a single day. Employees had to transport the meat to the shops every day in all weather. With the heavy weight, inclement weather posed a huge problem when sleds or wagons bogged down. Thus, the Dane was brought in to pull the weight. Over the years, they were bred specifically to handle this task with ease.
Loyalty, spirit and courage made them the perfect assistants in circuses where they gave lion tamers a few extra moments to escape if the cats attacked the trainers. The Danes did not hesitate to tackle the lion or tiger. Sometimes it ended badly for the Danes and eventually this practice ended.
Anyone looking at a Great Dane sees a massive animal, beautifully built and strong enough to make ownership challenging at best and disastrous at worst. We will be visiting three glorious Danes through the memories of Carol, who grew to love them above all other dogs. She found them to be curious, intelligent, comical, and a dog that must have proper training. To own one and hold back on the training results in unhappiness on both the owner’s part as well as the dog’s. It can also end with the dog cast aside or a home in tatters.
Carol, at various times owned Coby, Ginny and Clyde. Here in her own words, in bold print, are experiences that, while entertaining, should also warn against taking on a Great Dane unless a potential owner knows what to expect. Most people either love or dislike a Dane; there seems to be no middle ground.
TEETHING:
Great Dane puppies have big teeth! Like any puppy, they know how to use them. The difference is that the damage they create is often more intense than what small dogs might do. When they tire of the toys meant to help them through those sore gums, most teething puppies choose a chair or table leg and may leave scratches and a gouge or two. Dane puppies are a bit different.
My first two Danes did not teethe on the furniture or on anything other than their toys. Coby, my Blue Great Dane, was a whole other story! At 6 months old, instinct got the better of him. Instead of a chair leg, he chose the top corner of my husband’s solid cherry, custom-made credenza. As it stood at the perfect height, Coby did not have to bend over at all.
DANES DO NOT UNDERSTAND THEIR SIZE AND STRENGTH:
While Danes make terrific family pets, their size can be intimidating to children. At the age of four while playing a tug-of-war game with our 4-month-old Harlequin Dane my son, Michael learned a painful lesson. With a wooly stocking cap as the prize, Ginny lunged for the cap in Michael’s hand and took a chunk of skin from his finger along with it. A trip to the ER and a couple of stitches later, Michael had a story to tell and we learned a lesson: Even innocuous games can be dangerous with a large animal that does not know her own size. Ginny didn’t understand that she could hurt him.
Great Dane owners quickly learn that their tails, which wag much of the time, are lethal weapons. A happy Ginny and her wagging tail greeted my elderly uncle at the door and leveled him with one wag. Men especially should pay close attention to the possibilities of injury from that tail.
CURIOSITY AND INTELLIGENCE
Curiosity is sometimes the downfall of an intelligent Dane. In another article on this site, I told the story of our Ginny and the Jack Daniels Tipsy Fudge Cake. That event demonstrated her intelligence and how easily a Great Dane can get into trouble and be seriously harmed.
Once we left Ginny alone in our fenced back yard and heard a scream loud enough to rouse the dead. I raced outside to find her completely entangled in Jim’s hammock with each leg stuck in a different hole. When her head ended up in one, I believe that is when she screamed. It took three of us to free Ginny from the hammock, and she never approached it again. Leave no Great Dane outside alone for any length of time without checking on it. They are amazingly creative.
Clyde, a fawn-colored Dane, though neutered as a puppy, fell in love. A lovely young Golden Retriever lived at the Oman farm behind our property, and Clyde often escaped and headed over to “retrieve his retriever.”
After Clyde’s first retrieval, Princess stayed with us almost a week before her owner, Mr. Oman, saw the “found dog” notice at the local market and called about her. Needless to say, he was not thrilled with our young Romeo. After that, he knew exactly where to go when his dog pulled a disappearing act. We found the whole “affair” hilarious since Princess had been spayed. The two dogs wanted very much to be together, but Mr. Oman apparently disagreed. One day Princess left our home, never to return. Clyde moped around the house for a couple of weeks before getting over his ladylove. I should add that we lived in a rural area where most dogs were not confined.
Curiosity may kill a cat, but Danes are no strangers to it either, especially under the innocent eye of the unobservant. Clyde once stole an entire baked chicken from our dinner table just before we sat down to eat. Fortunately, he suffered no ill effects from his “snack.”
When one of our sons married, we held the rehearsal dinner at our home. A relative and I spent all day preparing a Mexican fiesta for 50 people. Along with the other foods, I placed a plastic-wrapped, large platter piled high with ham and rolls for anyone not fond of fiesta food. Unaware that Ginny lurked in the room, I turned away to rearrange something on the table. Seizing the moment, Ginny nosed inside of the plastic wrap grabbed several of the ham rolls and galloped through the house. I laughed but she could easily have stuck her nose into some spicy salsa or something else that might have harmed her.
Ginny and Coby loved the holidays! The large Christmas tree in the center of the family room provided an endless source of fascination for our big girl. More than once, I found one of the soft, stuffed tree ornaments beside Ginny on the sofa instead of on the tree where it was hung. She didn’t damage it – just kept it close to her.
Coby willingly wore the Santa hat. He would sit regally on the den sofa, hat upon his head.
DANES DO NOT JUST STAND:
Most well trained dogs stand beside you at the “heel” command. Not Great Danes! What may begin as a well-intentioned “heel,” quickly becomes a “lean.” Danes lean on their humans as a sign of affection and believe me when I say that 150 lbs. of dog leaning against your side is powerful!
DANES ARE EASY TO TRAIN:
My dogs were all obedience trained. Ginny came home to us from Meistersinger Kennels in Kentucky at the age of 6 weeks. (Today, reputable breeders know better than to adopt out puppies that young.) Fully housebroken within 2 weeks, she was embarrassed with the very few mistakes she made. Coby, my big Blue boy, was 9 weeks when I brought him home. I believe he was housebroken after 3 weeks. Danes are very clean animals and truly want to please their humans. Their great size makes training classes imperative. It is easy to look at the size of a year old Great Dane and forget that it is still a puppy lacking the maturity to behave properly all the time. Make allowances.
COMICAL:
Every Great Dane owner will tell you their dog makes them laugh. Ginny often backed up to the sofa and lifted her back legs up to sit with her rear on the sofa and front legs on the floor. Ever ladylike in her movements, she sat there as if she were one of the humans. She never failed to make us smile.
The ear cropping of Danes is not something I support. However, Coby’s ears, cropped before I brought him home, were still healing. If you do support this painful practice, know that it takes a good year for your dog’s ears to heal and be trained to stand upright. Given a video his breeder had created, I followed it religiously. However, Coby still ended up with one ear at half-mast. They call this the “flying nun” ear (after the old television comedy starring Sally Field).
DANES ARE KIND AND GENTLE DOGS AND EXCELLENT WITH CHILDREN:
An intuitive dog, Ginny sensed when someone was unhappy. She seemed to understand when to give comfort to those around her. She, Coby and Clyde loved all children and always wanted to play. Even as a senior dog, Ginny loved having the grandchildren come over. She wanted to be included in whatever they were doing. Danes possess the intelligence of young children and seem able to figure out problems. Our big dogs never intentionally harmed anyone and appointed themselves guardians of all children they knew.
Carol’s dogs certainly had all the characteristics normally associated with Great Danes. There are the few, however, that break the Courageous Rule.
COURAGE, THY NAME IS PEPE:
My cousin, Jean, owned a Chihuahua that held the mistaken notion it was the biggest, baddest dog in town. Evidently, his neighbor, a Great Dane, agreed with Pepe’s assessment of himself. Every time Pepe came out, if Chester was in the yard, immediately the larger dog ran for cover, usually straight through the screen door. He never bothered to have it opened before entering. Eventually the screen door came down and a solid wooden one took its place.
OTHER FACTS:
Dane’s have shorter life spans, usually 6-9 years, although Carol’s Harlequin, Ginny, lived to age 14. They need large cars for those trips to the vet or vacations. They need enough room to roam, but they also need a fence to keep them from the dangers of their natural inquisitiveness. They must have good training. They can be destructive in a home. Owners need patience, deep enough pockets for possible health problems and hearts as big as the dog their new pup will one day become.