A wonderful companion (Great Dane)

Member Name: Mick-Gray

Product:	Great Dane
Date:	07/05/01 (698 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Wonderful Companion , Great with kids , Fantastic housedog

Disadvantages: Needs a lot of attention

Merlin is our second Great Dane and Just like Sacha our first; he is part of the family (Just try leaving him out). Great Danes are just about one of the most loyal and loving dogs that you can have. The problem is that think that they are lapdogs. They want to be with you all of the time and get quite upset when they cant be. We had many happy times with Sacha our first who was a black and white Harlequin a really beautiful and loving animal. He loved the children and later on when the first grandchild came along loved her as well. Sadly one of the big disadvantages with Great Danes is their life span. Because of their size they either suffer from early heart problems or Arthritis in their hips. Sacha had a heart attack aged 8 and we sadly lost him. We were so upset but eventually decided that as he was such a wonderful companion we would get another one.

Off we went to a Great Dane breeder in Colchester, quite a drive for us and had a look at the litter that had not long been born. As we weren’t interested in a show dog we chose Merlin. Although to us he looked great, evidently his colour wasn’t quite right he should have had a white background (Who Cares). Merlin is what they call a blue harlequin. That is he should be white with blue grey patches. We went to pick him up when he was eight weeks old when he was already the size of a full-grown whippet (in height that is.). We were told he was going to be big even for a Dane. We had also at the same time bought a little black kitten called Louie so that they could grow up together.

The feeding routine of a great Dane puppy is very important they grow so rapidly that if they do not receive the correct food at the correct intervals (6-8 times a day at first} their health and their bone structure could cause problems later. Also at that age they are not supposed to strain their foreleg joints until they have formed properly, so they shouldn’t be allowed up
and down stairs for a month or so. The same goes for exercise, very little and gentle for the first few weeks. For the first few months they also need a good deal of attention as if they become bored they can be destructive. All dogs will do this but it is not much fun to come home and find he has eaten the three-piece suit as our first Dane did. Good job it was due for renewal anyway. But we had a few nerve racking weeks after we got the new one.

We found that going abroad on holiday was a problem as well. After all who wants to have a giant dog in their house for a fortnight. Our first holiday in Cyprus after having Sacha turned into a bit of a nightmare. We had selected a Great Dane breeder who also ran a boarding kennel, as we thought they would understand the needs of a Dane. On our return we collected the car at the airport car park and decided to drive directly to the kennels in Woking to collect him. We arrived just after a shift change of the staff and were beginning to get concerned when nobody could find him or knew where he was. We eventually found out that after a week he had pined for us so much that they had called in the vet because of his rapid weight loss. The vet had told the kennels that he was just on the point of no return and they had to do something quickly. Luckily for us and for the dog we had left my daughters telephone number and she had collected him and taken him home with her. She had to have him in her small flat for a week. After that if we went on holiday abroad my son stayed at home with him and we did not have any more problems.

Merlin seems to have much the same sort of personality. He loves to be with us wherever we go and loves to come with us when we take the caravan away. When he was about a year old we took the caravan away with friends for a week so that we could visit Alton towers. We were not sure how we were going to cope with the dogs and asked on the gate if we could keep coming in and out to check
on the dogs and let them stretch their legs at intervals. They said that it was fine to take the dogs in with us, which was a great relief. Merlin had a ride on the train that took us into the park and even went on the overhead cars that took us around the park; He loved it and when we went back the second day couldn’t wait to get on the train, needless to say he stopped the show wherever we went. He has also enjoyed a journey on the Romney Hythe and Dymchurch miniature railway from Hythe to Dungeoness. Merlin absolutely adores our 5 grandchildren and is a big softy with anybody he knows. Strangers however are a different story. He is the most wonderful housedog and we usually open the front door to find the double-glazing salesman at the end of the path with the gate shut in front of him. Merlin can stand on his back legs and look out of the window at the top of the front door. Not a pretty site when he is all teeth and deep barks. He will always let strangers in if we are there but lets them know that he is not too happy about it. After about 5 minuets he gets the message that it is ok and then he is very friendly.

When they are a few months old feeding is not such a problem. Merlin has two meals a day one early morning and one at teatime. We have found the Eeukaneba dried food to be very good and we give him a bowl of this each feed mixed with a half tin of butcher’s tripe to add a bit of flavour. It is best however to raise their feeding and water bowl to chest height for them to eat comfortably, otherwise they have to splay their legs to reach the bowl which we are told is not good for them. Contrary to belief a Dane does not need miles and miles of exercise. They will happily go for 20 miles if you could take them but because they want to be with you all the time they spend a great deal of time following you around the house. And are just as happy with a short walk as they are with a long one, all they want is to be with you and they are h
appy. It costs about a pound a day to feed him although this would be a lot more if he was only fed tinned food. Danes are not greedy dogs they eat what they want and leave the rest until later we do not give him titbits and he doesn’t worry for them although he will happily accept a biscuit from our two-year-old granddaughter. He does like to wait until the cat has finished his food and clear anything that is left and the cat always leaves him a little bit and he always waits until the cat is finished before getting it.

Merlin is now eight years old, he is happy and still playful but he does suffer with arthritis in his back hips. We sometimes have to help him up into the car (Quite a feat) but he still enjoys his walks. We know that the age he is for a |Dane is getting on and we don’t know how much longer we will have him, all I know is we will be heartbroken when he goes and so will our son and daughters and the grandchildren.

Would we have another Dane? I don’t know, they need a great deal of attention but that wouldn’t deter me for one minute, they are such wonderful loyal and loving companions. The only thing that puts me off is the short lifespan, they become such a loving member of the family that I don’t know whether we would want to go through all the pain of losing another one at about 8 or nine years old it is not long enough when you become so attached to them.

As you will have gathered having a Great Dane is not all wine and roses but if you are a dog lover and can give them the attention that they need I don’t think you would ever regret it, but if you cannot give them that attention then please forget it.

UPDATE.

Sadly we lost Merlin Yesterday 29/5/2001 of a Heart attack and we are both Devestated Merlin has for the past 9 years been a wonderful companion and part of the family. It hasn'nt quite sunk in yet that when we come home he will not be there to greet us.
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Mick Gray

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