Honey the Great Dane

“Ask Honey!” is a new series of posts in which I will answer questions sent to us via the ‘Contact Honey’ page. ~ Hsin-Yi

******

Hi!
    First let me start out by saying I love this site and have been visiting it daily to watch the videos of Honey with my two year old and he is a HUGE fan! Congrats on everything you’ve done, you both are very inspirational!   

I am hoping to add a Great Dane to our family soon (within 6 months) but I am having trouble knowing which puppy would be best so I was wondering what brought you two together?   

Also, seeing as this is my first time dealing with breeders are there any promises or should-be-deal-breakers I should be aware off? If you could help answer these questions I would be really grateful! Thanks!  

.

Thanks for your lovely words and I’m delighted that your family is getting so much out of Honey’s site!   

To answer your 1st question… 

Honey is my first dog and she is the dog I waited all my life to have. Growing up with parents that hated animals, I was never allowed pets – although this didn’t stop me sneaking downstairs after everyone had gone to bed and nicking things from the fridge to go out and feed the stray cats in the streets around our house! (My mother could never work out where all those leftover bowls of lamb mince and roast chicken were disappearing to! )  

At my favourite place...the Zoo!

Paul @ 'Disocver Dogs' - UK (1999)

More than anything, I desperately wanted a dog. I spent hours poring over dog books, memorising all the different breeds, imagining all the tricks I was going to train and the places I would take my pup.  

Even when I got older and romance entered the equation, the No. 1 criterion for any boyfriend was always: “must love dogs”.  

In fact, Paul can attest to the fact that before he met me, he knew nothing about dogs other than that most of them were called Labradors and they barked and wagged their tails - but within a year of going out with me, he could tell a Grand Bassett Griffon Vendeen from an Otterhound, name the 4 different kinds of Belgian Shepherds and explain how the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever got its name.  

He even faithfully accompanied me on my yearly pilgrimage to Crufts…now that’s true love!   

'Discover Dogs' - UK (1999)

Sadly, even when I left home to go to university and then later when I married and started work, our living arrangements and my long work hours meant that having a dog was out of the question.  

Still – having my own home meant that I was finally able to have ‘a pet’ and Paul and I were thrilled the day we went to the pet store and came home with a little hamster. I named her Smilla, after the heroine in one of my favourite books, ‘Miss Smilla’s Feeling For Snow’ and she was the most adorable little thing with great personality…  

The one & only Smilla...

 Smilla’s nocturnal habits meant that she suited our working hours perfectly and was always ready to greet us at the top of her multi-level, ’space station’ Hamster Hub when we came home at night. As she had the honour of being our very first pet (Paul came from a non-animal-loving family too), Smilla was probably the most spoilt hamster in the entire United Kingdom and we were absolutely devastated when she died after 2 & half years, even though we knew this was a hamster’s normal lifespan. For such a tiny thing, she left a huge hole in our hearts.  

Life was even more unstable after we decided to emigrate Down Under and I think I reached the low point in my pet-less existence during our trial year in Sydney when we were living in a high rise block where even pet fish were not allowed.  In desperation, I adopted a slug I found in a cabbage and named him Solly (short for Solomon). I made him a luxury home in a plastic takeaway container and lavished him with love and spinach leaves…  

Solly the Slug

But alas – Solly went to the Great Cabbage in the Sky after just one month and I was desolate, although Paul consoled me with the thought that 1 month was probably a ripe old age for a slug and he had become a very fat slug by then and had lived a great life with us…  

It wasn’t until we finally decided to settle in NZ (and sold our souls to the Devil in order to finance the mortgage on our first house) that we were finally in a position to have the dog I longed for. Now, I hadn’t been wasting my time – all those years of going to Crufts and devouring dog books…I had been researching dog breeds obsessively – and ultimately, my chosen breed: the Great Dane.  

I made contact with the Great Dane Club in Auckland, went to a couple of dog shows and got to know the breeders in the country. My favourite were the fawns with their expressive black masked faces. My years in the UK had given me a preference for the European style of Dane, with the more solid structure, heavy jowls, wrinkles and majestic head.  

NZ CH Yacanto Dato Star (Imp UK) - Honey's father

But the most important thing for me was temperament. I quickly learnt that there was one breeder in NZ who was renowned for the temperament of their dogs – and we were lucky enough to make their acquaintance at a dog show. Not only were the Yacanto Danes wonderful in temperament but they were stunning in looks and exactly of the European type I preferred. It was meant to be! I met Honey’s father, Blade, and her brother, Jake, and fell in love with them immediately. They were just the most gentle, sweet, placid dogs you could imagine.  

Meeting Honey's big brother, Jake, and father, Blade...

Like all good breeders, they had a waiting list a mile long but we were lucky in that they liked us enough to bump us to the top of the list (Paul thinks it was more because they thought my obsessive research a bit disturbing and wanted to get me off their backs as quickly as possible! ) – but we still had to wait a year for the litter, which would be a repeat of the mating that produced Jake. That was probably the longest year of my life! But finally – that email came: we had a puppy.  

Holding 4 week-old Honey for the first time...

We drove 9 hrs to visit the breeders and see Honey when she was 4 weeks old.  

Going into that room and hearing the squeaks and grunts of the puppies was probably one of the most exciting moments of my life.   

In fact, I had waited so long for this moment that when it came, it all passed in a bit of blur – like a dream.  

It was hard – even when I held her warm little body in my arms – to believe that here was my dog, at last.   

Honey was actually one of the smallest pups in the litter at the time – who would have believed that that little puppy would grow up into such a big, tall girl!   

There were 7 puppies in the litter but only 2 girls – so because we insisted on having a girl and Honey’s sister had already been marked for a show career, we didn’t really have ‘a choice’ as such – not that we’re complaining! And while Honey may not have had a great show career, I think she has still become a good ambassador for Great Danes – and made her breeders proud, in her own way!  

I had always promised myself that I would have my dog before I turned 30 – and sure enough, just a few months before my 30th birthday, Honey arrived home – the sweetest huge puppy with enormous paws, lots of wrinkles and a permanently bewildered expression…  

…and then the real fun began. All the reading and research in the world had not prepared me for what it was really like to have an 8 week old Great Dane puppy rampaging around the house. Let me tell you – it was a VERY steep learning curve!   

But that’s another story for another day…! 

OK – and now to answer your 2nd question with some practical information!   (if any readers have anything to add, please feel free to do so in the comments!)

With regards to choosing the most suitable puppy, I’m sure you have heard the standard advice: if you’re a first-time owner,  don’t choose the most confident puppy that comes running forward first to grab your shoelace (likely to be a real handful and require more experienced training) - nor the shy, timid pup in the corner (likely to need sensitive handling to prevent fear aggression developing) – but to choose the puppy in the middle: the one that might be cautious at first but then comes forward happily when you call; the one that interacts happily with his littermates but doesn’t try to bully or pin the others down all the time; the one that enjoys being handled but isn’t a miniature Jaws constantly at your fingers…of course, such a perfect puppy probably doesn’t exist! (Actually, looking back, Honey pretty much met all these criteria although we were not really checking that intently at the time!) 

But there will definitely be variations within the litter and if you get a choice, it’s worth your while observing the different personalities and how they interact with each other and with the humans in the room. Think about your own lifestyle and what kind of canine companion would suit your family, eg. if you have loud, rambunctious children, then perhaps a more confident puppy might be more suitable after all; if you’re a pensioner living a quiet life, then a shyer pup might not be such a bad idea. 

Personally, I would always go for a more confident dog over a more timid one because there is a lot more you can do to temper a bold personality (with good leadership & training) whereas it can be very difficult to manage a fearful, anxious dog, especially if you do not have a lot of time to devote to patient socialisation (not that the more confident puppies don’t need this too but you can probably get away with less, because of their naturally exhuberant, ‘bounce-back’ personalities). 

If you want to get technical about it, there are ‘puppy temperament tests’ that you can do – these are often used to determine whether pups are suitable for life as a service dog – and include things like gently flipping the puppy on its back to see how much/how long it struggles and making a loud noise near the pup to see how quickly and well the pup ‘recovers’ from being startled. For more information about these tests, go to: 

• http://hubpages.com/hub/Puppy-Temperament-Tests
• http://www.workingdogs.com/testing_volhard.htm
• http://www.nrta.com/breedforfoundation/temptest.html
• http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/articles/puppytemperamenttest.htm

However, these tests need to be done at around 6 weeks to produce any worthwhile results – before that, the pups are too young and haven’t really developed their personalities yet. Remember though, these tests are not an exact science, although they can give helpful insights. 

In any case, with rare pedigree breeds like the Great Dane, you may often not have a choice of puppy anyway, especially if you’re looking for “just a pet”. The ‘show homes’ will always get first choice of a litter and pet homes then select from the remaining puppies. If you are after a specific gender like we were and looking at a small litter, then the choice may be made for you.

This is why I feel that it is more important to choose a good, responsible breeder who will only be breeding from healthy dogs with stable temperaments - this means that while there will be variations within the litter, all the puppies should generally have stable temperaments and not be especially fearful. 

With Honey's breeders and her father & mother - both holding stuffies! You can see where Honey inherited THAT trait from!

. 

With regards to choosing a good breeder – as you can probably tell from my story above, I spent a loooong time researching and “preparing”. I was very lucky to be living in the UK at the time, where I could go to Crufts (the big annual dog show – equivalent to the Westminster in the US but bigger) as well as another great event called “Discover Dogs” which is organised by the British Kennel Club with the intention of helping the general public get to know the different breeds – so there are about 170 stalls, one for each of the breeds, and volunteer owners/breeders from each breed would be at the stalls with their dogs so people could meet the different breeds in real life, interact with them and ask questions about them. It is a fantastic way to really learn about a breed you’re interested in – see just how big or hairy or slobbery or hyper it is – and ask owners what it is like to live with them. You just can’t get that from a Dorling Kindersley, no matter how pretty the pictures! There are also doggie events on throughout the day, so I got to know all about the different activities you could do with your dog, like Agility, Flyball and of course, Canine Freestyle (“dog dancing”). 

So I did this for several years while I narrowed down my shortlist of breeds and then once I’d decided on the Great Dane, I researched the breed for another 3 years before making the commitment, reading every book published on the breed and also joining several online Dane forums just to lurk and read and learn (there are links to some of these forums in our sidebar)  

I don’t know if you have anything similar to Discover Dogs in the States but
if not, you can still go to dog shows and wander around. The people might
not be so willing to chat ‘coz they might be busy preparing for the ring,
etc, but this is still a good way to get to know the Dane breeders in
your area. In particular – if you do have a preference for a certain type of Dane – then you can see which breeder’s dogs match your preference. (I often get asked by other Dane owners what to feed their dogs so that they will become big and solid like Honey and I don’t have the heart to tell them that it is a matter of genetics and they have the lighter, daintier type of Dane which will never look like Honey no matter how much they feed it! So if it matters to you, make sure you pick the right type from the start.) 

Of course, you must remember that dog shows are a very artificial environment and not necessarily how a dog would behave, especially in a pet situation, but at least you can get some idea of what the stud dog or brood bitch is like when strangers approach and their attitude towards other dogs (watch the breeders – are they quite relaxed or very tense and constantly having to pull their dogs back from lunging at other dogs?) – this gives you some idea of temperament, which is the most important thing in a pet. Don’t be swayed by the ribbons and silver cups – there are many show champions with questionable temperaments who would be disasters in a pet home situation.

Don’t be shy about introducing yourself to breeders and saying that you’re thinking of getting a Great Dane and just doing research on the breed. Good breeders will be impressed with you. When we were living in the UK, I knew there was no way we could have a dog but I still got to know the Dane breeders around me, even though I knew I would probably never get a pup from them. It was good practice and the more different Danes you see and different breeders you speak to, the more information & experience you get for when you are REALLY selecting your puppy.

We even went to visit a couple of breeders just to meet their dogs in a home setting – nice breeders won’t mind and will be very happy to discuss their breed with you – even though I told them from the beginning that I couldn’t get a pup yet but just wanted to research the breed. In fact, if you are interested in a particular breeder, I would advise visiting them separately and seeing their dogs in a home setting if you can, before putting your name down for a puppy.

Another reason it’s good to go to shows and introduce yourself is that good
breeders will have very long waiting lists and they will usually only breed a few litters a year (no more than 2 litters from the same bitch a year, ideally less) – so you want to make a good impression with them so that they will remember you when you’re on the waiting list.

. 

Questions to ask breeders…

Make a list of questions to ask and see if a breeder minds being asked these questions. A good, responsible breeder not only won’t mind but will welcome questions as they will see that you have done your research and really care and know what you’re talking about. If a breeder gets huffy or won’t answer questions, then walk away – no matter how cute the pups are.

Things to think about when selecting a breeder include: 

Health Tests

- make sure you read up on the common hereditary conditions affecting your breed, so that you know what tests are available for these conditions and can ask about them. (For books about Great Danes with info on genetic conditions, go to the My Library page).

• Ask the breeder about any health issues in their lines. If they insist there are none, I would walk away. A good, responsible breeder will admit that no line is perfect and there are always health issues and they will be honest and say what they are doing to address those issues (eg, testing or changing their breeding)
•  
• The following is a (non-comprehensive) list of diseases known to affect Great Danes:

•  
• If you can, ask how long their (past) dogs normally live to. This isn’t a
  sign of a bad breeder since Danes sadly only live to 8yrs on average but I know some breeders have more longevity in their lines.  Having said that, I would still go with temperament first as I’d rather have a lovely-natured dog for 7 years than a difficult one for 12.

Other requirements:

For Danes, I would avoid a breeder who breeds several colours at once. Most responsible, ethical breeders only specialise in one or two colours and they are usually grouped together – ie. fawns & brindles/ fawn & black/ harlequin & black (incl. merle, mantle)/ blue & black) – there are some breeders who do have lots of Danes and breed all colours but they tend to be more of a “farm”. 

• Great Dane Club of America – Breeder Code of Ethics: http://www.gdca.org/codeofethics.htm

Also avoid any breeder who advertises ‘unusual’ or ‘rare’ colours, such as “fawnequins”, especially at exhorbitant prices. These are not ethical breeders as purebred Great Danes follow a strict code of breeding in terms of which colours can be bred together. Certainly, there are some colours, such as merle, which are not accepted in the show ring but make perfectly lovely pets but they are an accepted result of harlequin matings. The main colours in Danes are: fawn, brindle, black, blue & harlequin. In the US and Australia, the mantle (Boston) colouring is also accepted in shows although they are banned in the UK and NZ. Merle, merlequin and white Danes can also be found in harlequin litters and make attractive, lovely pets, even if they are not accepted for show (note though: white Danes often suffer from deafness and blindness).

• The Great Dane colour code of ethics: http://www.greatdane-dog-world.com/great-dane-color-code.html
• Great Dane Club of America – Breeders’ Colour Code: http://www.gdca.org/colorcode.htm 
• Great Dane Club of America – Understanding Colour Breeding: http://www.gdca.org/understandcolor.htm
• Great Dane coat colour breeding code: http://www.dogstuff.info/ez_coat_color_genetics_great_dane_yousha.html

Another thing to keep in mind about Danes is that the ‘rarer’ colours, such as blue and harlequin, have much more limited gene pools meaning that there is more inbreeding in general and any hereditary diseases are more likely to  manifest themselves in these colours, than in the more ‘common’ colours such as fawn.

Even if breeders are being very careful, they may simply have fewer genes to select from. Furthermore, some inethical breeders, in their determination to produce the elusive harlequin markings, will breed from dogs who have the ‘right’ coat colour, even if they have poor health, temperament or structural conformation.  I’m not suggesting that all harlequin breeders have this mindset or that all fawn breeders are ethical and produce healthy pups but it is something to bear in mind. (My original first choice of colour was blue but after doing research and learning about the higher incidence of health problems in blue Danes, I decided to go with fawns, which were my 2nd choice.)

There also tends to be fewer breeders of the ‘rarer’ colours and therefore your choice of breeders is more limited.

For some great background information about Great Danes, check out: http://www.dainwood.co.uk/aboutthebreed.htm

Avoid cheaply-priced Dane puppies. It is very expensive to breed and raise a litter of Dane puppies correctly and at the end of the day, you do get what you pay for.

.

Handling of puppies…

Are the puppies whelped and kept indoors in the early weeks, so they can be exposed to the noises of the house and start their socialisation? This is vitally important. Ideally, pups should be kept in the house until they go to their new homes but with a giant breed such as a Great Dane, it may not always be practical or possible, especially if the breeders live in a small house. So they are often moved outside to purpose-built kennels after 5 weeks or so. But avoid breeders that let their bitches have their pups outside in the garden shed and keep them outside all the time - these pups will lack the vital contact & socialisation with humans and normal household noises.

What socialisation has the breeder done or plans to do?  The more the better. For example, vacuuming near the pups, having a radio playing loudly nearby, having their own children or grandchildren (or friend’s children) visit and handle the pups, exposure to other pets…A puppy’s crucial imprinting period is from about 4 weeks to 16 weeks and once you miss this window, it can be very hard to socialise and overcome any fears – possibly resulting in an anxious, fearful, unstable dog which can develop fear aggression. So the early socialisation is absolutely crucial.  

What are their responsibilities after the sale of the pup? – eg. would they be willing to take the pup back if needed? A good breeder will care about every pup they breed and be responsible for it for life. For example, our breeders have it written in our contract that if for any reason we need to rehome Honey, she would go back to them first, so that they can make sure she goes to a good home. They have a “spay-neuter” clause in their contracts which means that any pup they sell as a “pet only” must be neutered, so that no irresponsible breeding can be done from him/her. This protects the dog and prevents backyard breeding. These are all signs of responsible breeders who really care about their dogs, as opposed to just making money.

.

At the end of the day, however, some of it will be based on your gut instincts and your ‘feel’ for the breeders. We didn’t ask every one of these questions or check every one of these points specifically with Honey’s breeders but I was aware of them and therefore, I was probably subconsciously ticking things off as we spoke and interacted with Honey’s breeders.

Sometimes, a good breeder won’t tick all the boxes but will tick several of the important ones, which is enough. You have to judge for yourself – but the more knowledge you have, the better you will be able to judge. It doesn’t mean, of course, that if you fulfill every one of these criteria, you will have the perfect puppy with no health or temperament issues – but it will go a long way towards stacking the odds in your favour.

Most of all, don’t rush! Don’t just go for the first breeder in your area who happens to have a litter available. Do your research, assess the breeders, take your time. I see a lot of people who decide they want a Dane and get impatient and just jump on the first litter they see advertised. Not all breeders are created equal (and not all Danes are created equal!) and there is a reason why good breeders have long waiting lists. We waited over a year for Honey (or actually, 30 yrs!) and I’m very glad we did. Good things come to those who wait.

Good luck!