Hi guys! My first question here. :)
Anyway, I lost my beloved little dachshund a couple of years ago and now I'm thinking about getting another dog. I wonder which size you think would fit me? I'm about 5'8 ½ inches tall and weigh 143 lbs. I've fallen in love with the Great Danes, but I'm afraid they might be too strong for me.
Help me? :p
2007-06-13 06:59:28 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
They are a gentle breed.If you get it young and train it,you would be alright.You do need lots of room for a dane to run.And be prepared for some chewing and digging.And LOTS of poop!
2007-06-13 07:02:54 · answer #1 · answered by lewiswebe 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you train your dog, size doesn't matter. Teach the dog to walk on a leash at a heel. Start the training when they are young. You need a choke chain and a leash. Only put the choke chain on when you are training or, once they've learned, only when you are going for a walk. Never leave the dog unattended with the choke chain on. It could get caught on something and, in their struggle to get free, they will choke themselves causing serious injury or death. Put the choke chain on ONLY to walk on a leash.
Have the dog sit by your left foot. Put the choke chain close to their ears. As you begin to walk with your left foot leading, gently pull on the leash and say your dog's name heel (Sam heel) then release the tautness. If the dog walks too far ahead or lags behind, pull on the leash and say heel and get the dog where you want him. After a few steps, stop and, at the same time, gently pull up on the leash as you push gently down by the base of the tail, and say sit. Then tell them how good they are, and repeat this for 30 minutes EVERY night for about 10 weeks. Actually, with each week, you are supposed to add something, like turning as opposed to walking straight, and come and down and stay -- the basics. When you put the choke chain on, make sure it is turned so there will be slack when you aren't pulling on the leash.
As long as the dog knows you are the "alpha," the dog won't be "too strong for you."
I wish you success in finding a breed which suits you and your personality.
2007-06-13 18:43:03 · answer #2 · answered by p51575j 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What do you want, why do you want a dog? Will it laze around the house inside with you, go to the park and play frisbee, see you only 1 hour in the morning and a few hours at night, or go joggin with you every day?
A great Dane is not good with hot or cold weather, so has to stay inside. They aren't good with jogging, but they need a walk everyday. They take well to obedience, which you need to be able to handle them. They will sleep inside, while you are at work.
.... They aren't lapdogs :-) ... but will sleep in bed with you.
If you get help training when the dog is less than 3 months old, or if you adopt a trained rescue dog (a very good choice), then you can handle them.
2007-06-13 14:06:17 · answer #3 · answered by hanksimon 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
great danes are a very gentle breed of dog but extremely strong. my girlfriend married a man some years back and he had an extremely well trained dane that was a joy tp be around. when he passed sadly at the age of 7 (which is not an unheard of age for a dane) they went and got another. i am not able to spend more than 10 minutes in my friends house now he is unruly and pushy, due to lack of training. so my point is any dog despite your size or their size needs to be correctly trained for them to be a good companion.
2007-06-13 14:14:19 · answer #4 · answered by princess 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Your size doesn't make any difference.
If you want a Dane, get a Dane.
The ones that I have known (my SIL's sister's two) were great dogs.
My, then five year old son, took her female on a walk and didn't have any problems with her over powering him.
As with any dog, if you don't invest time in training them, they will over power you.
As others have posted, they do, sadly, have short life spans and they do require a lot of room, but they are good dogs with wonderful personalities.
2007-06-13 14:42:52 · answer #5 · answered by Ani 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Your size isn't the issue, it's whether you have space in your home for a dog that large. If you obedience train a Great Dane puppy early and continue with training, you'll be able to handle him.
2007-06-13 14:03:32 · answer #6 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The more important question is what your home, schedule, personality, and lifestyle are like. Don't pick a dog by looks, choose it by personality. The link below has a test.
Good luck!
And I hope you'll go through rescue-- there are so many in need. Petfinder will give you all the dogs in need in your area. Once you know some breeds that will work, you can search on them.
2007-06-15 11:17:16 · answer #7 · answered by Dachsie rescuer 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you train it you should be able to get any size dog you want. I have a cousin who is just over 5 foot tall and she had a large Doberman - took him to obedience training and could walk him anywhere. If he'd really wanted to, he could have pulled her around like a rag-doll, but, like I said, she took him to obedience classes (he was between 4-6 months old even tho' my aunt said he was too young) and he learned to walk politely on leash. Off leash, in the back yard, he raced around like a horse - such a sweet, but big, boy.
2007-06-13 14:18:55 · answer #8 · answered by Carol G 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Great danes don't live very long sadly :(. If you want a dog easy to control, smaller, i have a GSD and im only 15 shes a great dog. hearding group dogs are great also
2007-06-13 14:03:06 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well i think you can get any dog if you just train it but if you are scared about a big dog pulling you over then get a medium size dog . you can go on all sorts of websites that will tell you wich dog suits you best.
2007-06-13 14:05:23 · answer #10 · answered by emi95 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋