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The Great Danes wait patiently for their turn in the showring.
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The following descriptions of the `ideal Great Dane' are not the specifications of any particular kennel club, but include requirements from many. They are intended to give the Dane owner who does not attend shows a basic idea of points to aim for when breeding and the less desirable points that should be bred out if possible.
The Great Dane should be elegant, strong and muscular, and carry the head and neck high, and the tail in line with the back. Grace is essential to a Dane; size is absolutely necessary, but there must be that brisk, alert expression by which the Dane shows character. He should be lithe, the hocks move freely and the head be carried high except when galloping. The male should have larger frame and heavier bone than the bitch. In the ratio between length and height, the Great Dane should be square, although a longer body is permissible on a bitch, providing she is well proportioned. Most kennel clubs require that the male shall not be less than 30 inches high at the shoulders, and the female shall not be less than 28 inches. Danes under minimum height will be disqualified.
Head
The head should appear long and strong. The muzzle or foreface is broad, and the skull proportionately narrow, so that the whole head views as parallel. The length varies with the height of the dog - 13in from the tip of the nose to the back of the occiput is a good measurement for a dog 32in at the shoulder. The skull should be flat and have a slight indentation running up the centre, the occipital peak not prominent. The cheeks should be strong rather than lumpy. The underline of the head, viewed in profile should run almost in a straight line from the corner of the lip to the corner of the jawbone, with no loose skin to hang down. The bridge of the nose should be very wide, with a slight ridge where the cartilage joins the bone. (This is a characteristic of the breed).
The nostrils should be large, wide and open, giving a blunt look to the nose.
The masculinity of the male is very pronounced in the Great Dane head. The bitch's head is more delicate. Whiskers may be trimmed or left natural.
Eyes: Fairly deep set, of medium size and preferably dark. Wall or odd eyes permissible in harlequins. Haws and Mongolian eyes not permissible.
Ears: Should be small, set high on the skull and carried slightly erect with the tips falling forward. The top line of the folded ear should be level with the skull.
Mouth: The teeth should be level and with scissors bite, clean and with full dentition.
Neck: The neck should be long, well arched, and quite clean and free from loose skin, held well up, well set in the shoulders, and the junction of the head and neck well defined.
Nose: Nose shall be black, except in the blue Dane, where it is a dark blue-black. A black spotted nose is permitted on the harlequin; a pink coloured nose is not desirable. A split nose is a disqualification.
Forequarters: The shoulders should be muscular and well sloped back, with the elbows well under the body. The forelegs should be perfectly straight.
Body: The body should be very deep, with ribs well sprung and belly well drawn up. The back and loins should be strong, the latter slightly arched.
Hindquarters: The hindquarters and thighs should be extremely muscular and the hocks set low, turning neither in nor out.
Feet: The feet should be catlike and should not turn in or out. Nails should be black but light nails are permissible in Harlequins.
Tail: The tail should be thick at the root, and taper towards the end, reaching to or just below the hocks. It should be carried in a straight line as a continuation of the spine.
Coat: The hair is short and dense, smooth and sleek-looking, and in no case should it be rough.
Colour markings and patterns
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In the showring Danes are calm and attentive.
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Brindle - The base colour lightest yellow to deepest orange and fawn, brindled with strong black cross stripes in a chevron pattern. Black mask, eye rims and eyebrows, and may appear on the ears and tail tip.
Fawn - Light buff to deep orange. Dark eyes and may appear on the ears and tail tip. Preference to intense yellows. White or black chest markings undesirable.
Blue - Light grey to deepest slate, with pure steel blue preferred. White markings at the chest and toes are not desirable.
Black - The colour shall be a glossy black. White markings at the chest and toes are not desirable. Nose and nails always black.
Harlequin - Base colour shall be pure white with black (or blue) torn patches irregularly and well distributed over the entire body. The black patches should never be large enough to give the appearance of a blanket, nor so small as to give a stippled or dappled effect.
Mantle - Black and white with a solid black blanket extending over the body; black skull with white muzzle; white blaze optional; whole white collar preferred; a white chest; white on part or whole of forelegs and hind legs and white-tipped black tail. Mantle is not a registered colour in some kennel clubs. A colour called Boston is also recognised by some kennel clubs
Gait
The gait denotes strength and power with long, easy strides resulting in no tossing, rolling or bouncing of the topline or body. The backline appears level and parallel to the ground.
The long reach should strike the ground below the nose while the head is carried forward. The powerful rear drive should be balanced to the reach. As speed increases, there is a natural tendency for the legs to converge towards the centreline of balance beneath the body. There should be no twisting in or out at the elbow or hock joints.
Temperament
The Great Dane is spirited, courageous, always friendly and dependable, and never timid or aggressive. Above all it is a reliable companion.
Weight: The minimum height of adults over eighteen months must be Dog: 76.2 cm (30 in) Bitch: 71.1 cm (28 in). The minimum weight of adults over 18 months must be Dogs: 54.4 kg (120 lb) Bitches: 45.3 kg (100 lb).
Faults: Cow-hocks. Out at elbows. Straight stifles. Undershot or overshot mouth. Round bone. Snipy muzzle. Straight shoulders. Shelly body. Ring tail.
Light coloured nose and claws (except harlequin).
The Great Dane was developed in Germany to hunt wild boars. The earliest written description of a dog resembling the breed can be found in Chinese literature of 1121BC (an article by Dr G Ciaburri, of Italy publication, 1929). The name of the breed in English is a translation of an old French name, grand Danois, meaning "big Danish". This was only one of half a dozen names which had been used for centuries in France. Why the English adopted the name Great Dane from the French is a mystery.
In 1891 the Great Dane Club of Germany adopted a precise standard or official description of the ideal specimen. A Great Dane can make a great family dog but requires a lot of companionship and attention.
The Great Dane is devoted to his family, and has easy tolerance of other animals. With strangers the Dane can be proud, reserved and suspicious. With friends they are outgoing and affectionate.
Originally in Germany the largest and best were kept as companion/guard and hunting dogs. No German palace or castle was without one or more of these imposing dogs and they were special favourites of the Iron Chancellor Bismark, who made them his bodyguards and constant companions.
When hunting and guarding the main attributes required in this breed were size and weight, nobility and courage, speed and endurance. It was a giant dog with a heavy rectangular head for hunting or fighting purposes. The breed also thrived in Germany about the turn of the century when Great Danes were the most popular choice of dog used by butchers to pull the carts or sleds used to transport daily meat requirements from a central cold store to their shops.
Today the Great Dane finds his niche in life as a companion/guard dog and excels when kept as a family member.
Housing
Despite his great size, the Dane makes an excellent house dog that is easy to live with when given sufficient time and attention and regular exercise.
A secure environment with responsible caring owners, will see the Great Dane happy and retained on his own property unless escorted. When left at home on his own, it is advisable that a young Dane has some form of amusement to hand - toys, bones, or a companion. Put anything you value out of reach. This may entail a room in the garage or basement with access to a fenced back-yard, or a kennel and run.
Feeding
Breeders have their own preferences regarding feeding and it is wise to follow their advice, initially at least. Once mature, the Great Dane does not require the mountain of food that is commonly presumed, especially when most are not kept as active working dogs. The critical time in feeding and rearing is in the first year, when the Great Dane grows swiftly to attain most of his final height. The rapid growth period from four to nine months is especially crucial and protein content in the diet at that time should be low so as to not further accelerate growth rate, which enhances the probability of bone problems.
Grooming
An occasional wash, a healthy diet and regular brushing will keep the short-coated, easy- care Great Dane in good trim. Nails will need regular trimming.
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| Excuse me, I'm a little peckish and the smell of those dried liver treats in your pocket is making me drool. |
Training
As a giant breed, it is imperative that the Great Dane be well mannered, well socialised and respectful of it's owner. A basic obedience course should be mandatory. The Great Dane is keen to please and likes to participate where possible with its owner's activities. Basic daily should be regular exercise and walks together. Some Danes love to swim, most have hunting instincts and love a chance to get back to nature. Others enjoy helping with gardening, accompanying horses, rides in the car, a day at the Dog Show; or whatever else their family may offer. Companionship is the basic need.
As a giant breed, the Great Dane is not expected to live as long as smaller dogs. Ten years is a good age to aim at, though some don't make it that far and some last longer.
Health
Heart problems are a legacy of being a giant breed evolved from the normal size dog with an average size heart to power the giant breed. Bloat is another concern, not as common in Danes in NZ as in some other countries. Advice is often that Great Danes should be relaxed and rested for at least 30 minutes prior to and after eating, a total dry-food diet is not advocated, and feeding twice a day is recommended with the main meal feed in the morning. Over-exhaustion or violent exercise is be guarded against while still growing as bone problems, which may have dire consequences, frequently arise from trauma injury - a knock, bump, bang or fall. The purchase price of a Dane may vary from time to time and place to place, but should relate to quality. A well-marked Harlequin Great Dane (if available) will command a much higher price because of the difficulty of producing this colour pattern.
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