The Great Dane is called the Apollo of dogs, and that’s just one of the many great things about him
The Great Dane is a giant, powerful dog. He has a square body but females are slightly longer than tall. He has a long head which is rectangular in shape. He has a deep muzzle with a pronounced stop. His nose is black, blue/black on blue Danes or black spotted on the harlequins.
Great Danes have long, rectangular heads
He has a dark, deep set of eyes which are medium in size. His ears are also medium and sized and are set high. When left in their natural state, the ears are folded forward and hang close to the cheek. some owners like to crop them, and when the ears are cropped they stand erect and are large in proportion to the rest of the head, however, cropping ears is illegal in many countries.
The Great Dane’s well arched neck is set high, they are firm and muscular. The front legs are perfectly straight and the feet are round, his toenails are dark. Their tails are set high, they are thicker at the base and tapering to a point.
Great Dane
Great Danes have short and thick coats which come in many colors such as black, blue, fawn, brindle, mantle harlequin and merle, but the last one is kind of rare. The coat can also be chocolate color, but this occurs in a recessive gene.
Origin & History
The Great Dane is one of the oldest breeds known to man, which is why he is called the “Apollo” of all dogs. There are dogs which resemble the Great Dane found on Greek money that dates back to 36 B.C.
There are also Egyptian monuments that from roughly 3000 BC that has drawings on Great Danes on them.
The earliest writings of dogs that sound like Great Danes are to be found in Chinese literature which dates back to 1121 B.C.
In 407 A.D, German Gaul as well as parts of Italy and Spain were invaded by the Alans (Asiatic people), the Alans brought with them powerful mastiff-like dogs, those dogs were admired for their ability to bring down wild boar and bear. It’s believed that those dogs have been Wolfhounds mixed with Old English Mastiff. Through selective breeding, they added the Greyhound in order to create the Great Dane.
Great Danes were used as hunters and estate guard dogs. They have other talents as well such as tracking, crating and they make good watchdogs. The Great Dane was recognized first in 1887.
More about the Great Dane in the next page
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