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AKC MEET THE BREEDS®:
Great Dane
A
"gentle giant," the Great Dane is nothing short of majestic.
Sometimes referred to as the "king of dogs," this extremely large
dog breed is known for being strong yet elegant, with a friendly,
energetic personality. Striking in the show ring, this breed is also
popular as a family pet. Coat colors can be brindle, fawn, blue,
black, harlequin and mantle.
A Look Back
Historians claim that there are drawings of dogs that resemble the
Great Dane on Egyptian monuments from roughly 3000 B.C. The earliest
written description of a dog resembling the breed can be found in
Chinese literature of 1121 B.C. The origins of the Great Dane as we
know it today can be traced to the Irish Wolfhound with mixture of
old English Mastiff. The breed was originally developed by the
Germans to hunt boar, a ferocious animal. When no longer used for
hunting, the breed changed to one of a companion and estate guard
dog.
Right breed for you:
Great Danes have gentle and loving
dispositions, making them excellent family companions, but as with
all dogs, they should be supervised around young children. Daily
exercise is necessary, but their short coats require minimal
grooming.
If you are considering purchasing a
Great Dane puppy,
learn more here.
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Working Group; AKC recognized in 1887.
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Minimum height of 30 inches tall at the shoulder for males and
28 inches tall for females.
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Boar hunter; estate guard dog.
©
The American Kennel Club, Inc.
Great Dane Breed
Standard
General Appearance
The Great Dane combines, in its regal appearance, dignity, strength
and elegance with great size and a powerful, well-formed, smoothly
muscled body. It is one of the giant working breeds, but is unique
in that its general conformation must be so well balanced that it
never appears clumsy, and shall move with a long reach and powerful
drive. It is always a unit-the Apollo of dogs. A Great Dane must be
spirited, courageous, never timid; always friendly and dependable.
This physical and mental combination is the characteristic which
gives the Great Dane the majesty possessed by no other breed. It is
particularly true of this breed that there is an impression of great
masculinity in dogs, as compared to an impression of femininity in
bitches. Lack of true Dane breed type, as defined in this standard,
is a serious fault.
Size,
Proportion, Substance
The male should appear more massive throughout than the bitch, with
larger frame and heavier bone. In the ratio between length and
height, the Great Dane should be square. In bitches, a somewhat
longer body is permissible, providing she is well proportioned to
her height. Coarseness or lack of substance are equally undesirable.
The male shall not be less than 30 inches at the shoulders, but it
is preferable that he be 32 inches or more, providing he is well
proportioned to his height. The female shall not be less than 28
inches at the shoulders, but it is preferable that she be 30 inches
or more, providing she is well proportioned to her height. Danes
under minimum height must be disqualified.
Head
The head shall be rectangular, long, distinguished, expressive,
finely chiseled, especially below the eyes. Seen from the side, the
Dane’s forehead must be sharply set off from the bridge of the nose,
(a strongly pronounced stop). The plane of the skull and the plane
of the muzzle must be straight and parallel to one another. The
skull plane under and to the inner point of the eye must slope
without any bony protuberance in a smooth line to a full square jaw
with a deep muzzle (fluttering lips are undesirable). The
masculinity of the male is very pronounced in structural appearance
of the head. The bitch’s head is more delicately formed. Seen from
the top, the skull should have parallel sides and the bridge of the
nose should be as broad as possible. The cheek muscles should not be
prominent. The length from the tip of the nose to the center of the
stop should be equal to the length from the center of the stop to
the rear of the slightly developed occiput. The head should be
angular from all sides and should have flat planes with dimensions
in proportion to the size of the Dane. Whiskers may be trimmed or
left natural.
Eyes shall be medium size, deep set, and dark, with
a lively intelligent expression. The eyelids are almond-shaped and
relatively tight, with well developed brows. Haws and mongolian eyes
are serious faults. In harlequins, the eyes should be dark; light
colored eyes, eyes of different colors and walleyes are permitted
but not desirable.
Ears
shall be high set, medium in size and of moderate thickness, folded
forward close to the cheek. The top line of the folded ear should be
level with the skull. If cropped, the ear length is in proportion to
the size of the head and the ears are carried uniformly erect.
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 colored nose is not desirable. A split nose is a
disqualification.
Teeth
shall be strong, well developed, clean and with full dentition. The
incisors of the lower jaw touch very lightly the bottoms of the
inner surface of the upper incisors (scissors bite). An undershot
jaw is a very serious fault. Overshot or wry bites are serious
faults. Even bites, misaligned or crowded incisors are minor faults.
Neck, Topline,
Body
The neck shall be firm, high set, well arched, long and muscular.
From the nape, it should gradually broaden and flow smoothly into
the withers. The neck underline should be clean. Withers shall slope
smoothly into a short level back with a broad loin. The chest shall
be broad, deep and well muscled. The forechest should be well
developed without a pronounced sternum. The brisket extends to the
elbow, with well sprung ribs. The body underline should be tightly
muscled with a well-defined tuck-up.
The croup should be broad and very slightly sloping. The tail should
be set high and smoothly into the croup, but not quite level with
the back, a continuation of the spine. The tail should be broad at
the base, tapering uniformly down to the hock joint. At rest, the
tail should fall straight. When excited or running, it may curve
slightly, but never above the level of the back. A ring or hooked
tail is a serious fault. A docked tail is a disqualification.
Forequarters
The forequarters, viewed from the side, shall be strong and
muscular. The shoulder blade must be strong and sloping, forming, as
near as possible, a right angle in its articulation with the upper
arm. A line from the upper tip of the shoulder to the back of the
elbow joint should be perpendicular. The ligaments and muscles
holding the shoulder blade to the rib cage must be well developed,
firm and securely attached to prevent loose shoulders. The shoulder
blade and the upper arm should be the same length. The elbow should
be one-half the distance from the withers to the ground. The strong
pasterns should slope slightly. The feet should be round and compact
with well-arched toes, neither toeing in, toeing out, nor rolling to
the inside or outside. The nails should be short, strong and as dark
as possible, except that they may be lighter in harlequins. Dewclaws
may or may not be removed.
Hindquarters
The hindquarters shall be strong, broad, muscular and well
angulated, with well let down hocks. Seen from the rear, the hock
joints appear to be perfectly straight, turned neither toward the
inside nor toward the outside. The rear feet should be round and
compact, with well-arched toes, neither toeing in nor out. The nails
should be short, strong and as dark as possible, except they may be
lighter in harlequins. Wolf claws are a serious fault.
Coat
The coat shall be short, thick and clean with a smooth glossy
appearance.
Color,
Markings and Patterns
Brindle--The
base color shall be yellow gold and always brindled with strong
black cross stripes in a chevron pattern. A black mask is preferred.
Black should appear on the eye rims and eyebrows, and may appear on
the ears and tail tip. The more intensive the base color and the
more distinct and even the brindling, the more preferred will be the
color. Too much or too little brindling are equally undesirable.
White markings at the chest and toes, black-fronted, dirty colored
brindles are not desirable.
Fawn--The
color shall be yellow gold with a black mask. Black should appear on
the eye rims and eyebrows, and may appear on the ears and tail tip.
The deep yellow gold must always be given the preference. White
markings at the chest and toes, black-fronted dirty colored fawns
are not desirable.
Blue--The
color shall be a pure steel blue. White markings at the chest and
toes are not desirable.
Black--The
color shall be a glossy black. White markings at the chest and toes
are not desirable.
Harlequin--Base
color shall be pure white with black torn patches irregularly and
well distributed over the entire body; a pure white neck is
preferred. 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. Eligible, but less desirable, are a few small gray
patches, or a white base with single black hairs showing through,
which tend to give a salt and pepper or dirty effect.
Mantle--The
color shall be black and white with a solid black blanket extending
over the body; black skull with white muzzle; white blaze is
optional; whole white collar is preferred; a white chest; white on
part or whole of forelegs and hind legs; white tipped black tail. A
small white marking in the blanket is acceptable, as is a break in
the white collar.
Any variance
in color or markings as described above shall be faulted to the
extent of the deviation. Any Great Dane which does not fall within
the above color classifications must be disqualified.
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 shall appear 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 toward the centerline of balance beneath the body. There
should be no twisting in or out at the elbow or hock joints.
Temperament
The Great Dane must be spirited, courageous, always friendly and
dependable, and never timid or aggressive.
Disqualifications
Danes under
minimum height.
Split nose. Docked
Tail.
Any color other
than those described under "Color, Markings and Patterns." |
