- Welcome!
- Cairn Terriers
- The Cairn litter
- Puppies!!!...Archie and Angus
- Introducing.....Plum Bob!
- Cairn Characteristics
- First days in big wide world!!
- Showing and results 2008-2009!
- Showing and results 2010!
- Crufts 2009
- Growing...
- Picture gallery
- Guest Book
- Links
- Harvey's website
- Apollo of Dogs
- In the beginning
- Great Dane Traits
- Exercise and feeding
- Great Dane Showing
- Show results
- Copy-Harvey's old guestbook
- Helpful information
- Crufts 2006
- Harvey's picture gallery
The following information is adapted from books we've read and information we've picked up from a variety of sources - it is not definitive! There are books written about Danes for those readers who want to know more about Great Danes in more detail and this is purely a taster of the breed.
There is some evidence to suggest that dogs similar to Great Danes were found among archaeological remains from ancient Assyrian monuments. The Great Dane as we know it today originates from Germany and was initially bred as a hunting dog for wild boars, a guard dog and a war dog. One striking charateristic remaining from the early Danes is the sight of cropped ears (which continues to occur in the USA and Germany). Ear-cropping is illegal in the UK under Kennel Club regulations. Cropping was carried out to prevent injury whilst the dogs were hunting from dense bush or the boars themselves. It is hard to believe that this was once able to hunt, guard and go to war.........!!!
Perhaps it is a good idea to get the 'size' issue out of the way here and now, although it won't be the last time it's mentioned on this site.
Great Danes are big dogs and I guess the clue is in the name....Great.... There is no getting round this point. They grow at a very fast rate - from small puppy (by Dane standards, although they are still the size of some fully grown dogs when they are puppies) to fully grown (in height) by about a year. Although it is not a requirement that Dane owners have big houses, there is a need for the dog to have space to move around, to have access to an outside space for play and toiletting and of course, room for a big bed. All that said, their size means they are certainly not a dog that can be ignored - our breeder commented before we picked Harvey up that we would never walk in a straight line in our house again.....she was right and we never have! Wherever you are, your Dane will be sure to follow - it doesn't matter if the space you are in is too small, your Dane will try and fit in there with you. He just wants to be with you, always.
The Great Dane that we know today has been bred to bring out the best characterstics in the breed. Danes are noted for their loyalty to their families. They protect the ones they know the best and are initially aloof with strangers. They are a very sensitive breed. They have numerous lovable characteristics that we have experienced with Harvey as he has grown with us and ones we will describe on our 'Great Dane Traits' page. As one author notes when writing about the breed "He will lay down his life for you if needs be". Besides everything, Harvey has become a loyal and loving dog to be around......
One final note. Another good piece of advice from Harvey's breeder and one that we think most Dane owners agree with - Danes are addictive.....one is never enough! We have completely committed time to Harvey and have made lots of compromises in order to put him first and include him in as much of our lives as we can. The compromises haven't been hard to make - you can't resist those big adoring eyes. But it is worth bearing in mind that they are addictive and once you've had a Dane, you can't get them out of your head. Who can resist this bag of fun who just makes you smile.....
There is some evidence to suggest that dogs similar to Great Danes were found among archaeological remains from ancient Assyrian monuments. The Great Dane as we know it today originates from Germany and was initially bred as a hunting dog for wild boars, a guard dog and a war dog. One striking charateristic remaining from the early Danes is the sight of cropped ears (which continues to occur in the USA and Germany). Ear-cropping is illegal in the UK under Kennel Club regulations. Cropping was carried out to prevent injury whilst the dogs were hunting from dense bush or the boars themselves. It is hard to believe that this was once able to hunt, guard and go to war.........!!!
Perhaps it is a good idea to get the 'size' issue out of the way here and now, although it won't be the last time it's mentioned on this site.
Great Danes are big dogs and I guess the clue is in the name....Great.... There is no getting round this point. They grow at a very fast rate - from small puppy (by Dane standards, although they are still the size of some fully grown dogs when they are puppies) to fully grown (in height) by about a year. Although it is not a requirement that Dane owners have big houses, there is a need for the dog to have space to move around, to have access to an outside space for play and toiletting and of course, room for a big bed. All that said, their size means they are certainly not a dog that can be ignored - our breeder commented before we picked Harvey up that we would never walk in a straight line in our house again.....she was right and we never have! Wherever you are, your Dane will be sure to follow - it doesn't matter if the space you are in is too small, your Dane will try and fit in there with you. He just wants to be with you, always.
The Great Dane that we know today has been bred to bring out the best characterstics in the breed. Danes are noted for their loyalty to their families. They protect the ones they know the best and are initially aloof with strangers. They are a very sensitive breed. They have numerous lovable characteristics that we have experienced with Harvey as he has grown with us and ones we will describe on our 'Great Dane Traits' page. As one author notes when writing about the breed "He will lay down his life for you if needs be". Besides everything, Harvey has become a loyal and loving dog to be around......
One final note. Another good piece of advice from Harvey's breeder and one that we think most Dane owners agree with - Danes are addictive.....one is never enough! We have completely committed time to Harvey and have made lots of compromises in order to put him first and include him in as much of our lives as we can. The compromises haven't been hard to make - you can't resist those big adoring eyes. But it is worth bearing in mind that they are addictive and once you've had a Dane, you can't get them out of your head. Who can resist this bag of fun who just makes you smile.....