UPDATE. We went and seen the pups and of course I fell in love with all of them. My wonderful wife surprised me with a day early birthday present and I am now the proud owner of a Blue Merle Great Dane! Wonderful puppy!
Thanks for all the advice, I will do my best to give the “little” guy a great home. I will post a picture in a few hours.
My neighbor has six. As a friend of mine put it, “That’s thirty feet of dog”. They’re sweethearts, but bear in mind that they don’t live as long as smaller breeds and they suffer from hip problems.
Here is a pic of the new pup and me. Yeah, I know I am ugly, but the dog is good looking. Trying to name it, suggestions welcome. Preferably something German, but not required!
https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/0jWWl7yxRhLcIRTLyvBp8Q?feat=directlink
Everything has already been said here, but I thought I’d throw in my experience with Danes.
We owned two at the same time: one was a rescue dog (Shiloh), and one being a Blue Merle (Dixie). They both were house dogs, and I can attest to the fact that they loved being on the couch. Dixie would actually back up to the couch and sit on it like a human. Oh, and they loved sleeping in bed with my wife and I. Yeah, it was crowded.
Shiloh had recovered from bloat when we rescued her, and we she was about 6 when we got her. With a healthy diet, some moderate exercise, and a daily dose of glucosamine, she lived to be almost 11 (died last year). We picked up Dixie about a year after we got Shiloh, and she’s still doing great today.
They’re clumsy when they’re young. We didn’t crop ears or tails, and if you choose to leave the tail uncropped can become powerful enough to knock full two liter bottles off the coffee table when they get to wagging. Trust me on this.
Learn to move edibles BACK from the edge of kitchen counters. Dixie covertly snatched a plate of 4 NY strip steaks off the counter that were resting after being cooked. Somehow she managed to get the plate off the counter and set it on the floor without breaking it, and devoured the steaks. I walked into the kitchen to a clean plate on the floor, and a guilty look on her face.
Re: drool. Neither of our dogs DROOLED per se, but they both drank (like most large dogs do) in a “biting” fashion. Meaning, they don’t lap at the water, they kind of bite at it. This fills their mouth with water, and they tend to pull away before their mouth fully drains, which causes a surprising amount of water to spill out of their mouths and onto the floor. Keep a towel handy.
I can’t recommend them enough.
Linky no worky 
BTW - here’s a link to a pic of Dixie from a few years back. Hope it works: Dixie.
You mean, take feeding advice from someone who has a financial interest in certain brands of dog food, and not someone who may have raised five generations?
Sorry. I’ve been feeding raw for 15+ years, from weaning on up and my guarantee states that any buyer whose vet talks them into feed Science Diet has voided that guarantee.
Fix linky plz. Maybe the privacy setting?
There’s a children’s book called “The Ark” by Margot Benary-Isbert about a family who raised these dogs. I loved it. The only male dog I remember from it was named Alf.
Shayna does. 
I had a feeling she wouldn’t let you down. 
I’ll be waiting impatiently for the picture!
Congratulations on your puppy! I hope you have many years of happiness together!
I have opinions on breeding practices and feeding, but I don’t want to spoil a nice thread. If anyone chooses to open another, I would be happy to participate.
Again, congrats!!
I’ve met a few Danes and they seemed gentle. I’ve also witnessed them very calmly sticking up for smaller dogs who were being harassed at the dog park – no threat displays or barking, just a giant dog smoothly stepping between the ruffians and their target, and a great head turning to stare at the offenders. 
But we did know neighbors who lost their Dane at age 7 due to spinal issues (very sad).
Congrats on the new dog!
My roommate back in college got two Great Dane puppies with her boyfriend. No, they didn’t ask me first, but I wasn’t too upset since I am a dog lover, and the puppies were really cute and sweet. They spent half their time at our house.
Then one day I came home from work to find they had eaten my couch. No, that’s not an exaggeration. Nothing left but the wood frame, and some springs. Foam, etc. all over the house. Looking back it’s kind of funny, but I was not amused at the time. At least my roommate did pay me back.
So, just an anecdote to make sure you understand the potential for destruction!!
All I will say is I have absolutely no financial interest whatsoever in any brand of dog food. I do have an interest in proper nutrition. I am more than happy to help formulate a home cooked diet for anyone who asks.
That is all I will say as this is a happy thread. Congrats on the new baby! I look forward to the picture!
Uh huh. Trash a legit form of nutrition then claim you won’t do anything bad in a happy thread. Don’t sell any dog food at your clinic then?
My vet is more than willing to admit to the things he doesn’t know much about, and since he knows I’ve spent over 15 years studying and testing what I feed, he has an open mind about feeding raw. It’s too bad that so many vets are too insecure to do that.
Dendarii Dame - I have that book! I was very fond of Margot Benary-Isbert as a child. The family in the book had two Great Danes named Christian and Cosi they lost in WWII, I think. The litter of pups she helps raise were all named after Shakespeare characters beginning with the letter “L”, I think. Pony’s name was Mignon. All that, but I can’t remember the girl’s name!
I’m a big fan of Lois McMaster Bujold, too.
StG
Okay, going to try to get some picture links working now. We decided on Gunner for a name. I wanted Felix, but I gave up naming rights as a condition of getting the Dane. My wife got the naming rights, although I did have veto power. He looks like a Gunner, so that will work fine. Hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I am enjoying the puppy!
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx104/obbn/007.jpg
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx104/obbn/008.jpg
Thanks so much for all the advice and good thoughts!
Very cute!
Are you going to leave his ears natural?
