So we got a Great Dane...

[nubonics]

Hey friends! So I haven't been online for a bit, again because we recently added a fourth to our household. A very playful energetic Great Dane.

Curly currently hates him. I think he is feeling dethroned as the baby dog so we are trying give Curly a lot of special attention because he seems to get jealous easily LOL. Curly really is an amusing dog. He has even gotten more cuddly since the puppet arrived.

Slowly but surely he is warming up to the new guy.

Well in getting a Great Dane I joined a Great Dane forum because this is our first giant breed and I was hoping to gain advice and knowledge. Let's talk about a cold judgmental welcoming! I had posted a picture of Jawnie (our new Great Dane) and was inquiring about Knuckling/ nutrients and the people on the forum just started picking apart his photos:

1. They said his feet look flat and splayed (even though I mention he was moving in all the pictures)

2. They said his belly looks too round - he probably has worms (even though the picture was of him eating and having a full belly/ he was just given a clean bill of health by the vet plus given his next course of dewormer - all was mentioned when posting the picture)

One of my questions was "when do I take the puppy (10 wks) to the vet if I suspect knuckling - I've read online that knuckling commonly happens to puppies when they are switching foods around 7-10wks and can correct itself." Since I said the latter statement several of the senior members took my statement as I didn't take the condition seriously - "this wasn't something that is common and isn't something to wait out" However, knuckling is common enough for people to say it's common occurrence with fast growing dogs and I never said I was "waiting it out" ... Basically I wanted to know if I was being too paranoid

I was ready to lose my patience and go on a long rant about how unwelcoming they have been and that I won't be coming back. I wrote it all down and just stepped away/deleted and just said to myself it's not worth it.

Anyhow, all of this made me realize how warm and welcoming EBN has been to us over the last 2.5 years since we brought Curly home. Thank you guys!

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[2BullyMama]

OMG.... what a handsome fella! Look at Curley face.... he is so not happy --- Momma, get him away, he is invading my sleep space!!! LOL What is his name?

I do not know much about GD's, but the breeder I got all my bulldogs from also breed Dane's for many years so I could ask her the questions you have and maybe help you along.

I so LOVE his ears... big and floppy

 

[oscarmayer]

He's really cute...and WOW, he's all legs!

 

[jdeveaux]

Gorgeous pup. I love Great Danes but my wife would put me in a dog house outside if I brought home a dog bigger than her.

I know how your feeling about the welcoming committee. Some people just make things way to personal instead of relaxing and remembering that they were new to something once. The "welcoming committee", I say in good humor, can be a strong indication of the culture of the club/site.

I have a friend that rescues and rehabilitates Great Danes I will run the question by her. (She's 4'-8" tall and has 5 Danes in her house, it is freaking hilarious)

 

[nubonics]

Haha Curly is starting to be a better sport about Jawnie (his full name is Jawn Matrix after John Matrix - Arnold's character in commando)

I think once Curly is able to wrestle with him he will be much more happy with him being around.

Thank you for offering to help with advice on GD. It turns out that a few of my friends have experience with giant breeds so they have come to the rescue. I'm just so surprised that the forum I wrote in was so judgmental! If they only knew the lengths I go to for my fur babies!

https://vimeo.com/158020865


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[MrsD161]

LOVE his markings, very beautiful dog!

 

[oscarmayer]

I think once Curly is able to wrestle with him he will be much more happy with him being around.

and in 6 months Curly will be wondering "what the heck happened to that puppy?"
I can't wait to see a video of those 2 wrestling 6 months from now.

 

[nubonics]

and in 6 months Curly will be wondering "what the heck happened to that puppy?"
I can't wait to see a video of those 2 wrestling 6 months from now.

HAHA! I know! That video was taken last week and since he has gotten longer and he is now almost as tall as Curly. He is still unstable so he gets knocked down easily.

I'm learning all sort of new things about GDs now. BUT if I really need to be honest, Curly still has the best personality among all 4 of my dogs. EB Owners are 100% correct - there really isn't a breed with a better personality than an EB.

 

[2BullyMama]

Haha Curly is starting to be a better sport about Jawnie (his full name is Jawn Matrix after John Matrix - Arnold's character in commando)

I think once Curly is able to wrestle with him he will be much more happy with him being around.

Thank you for offering to help with advice on GD. It turns out that a few of my friends have experience with giant breeds so they have come to the rescue. I'm just so surprised that the forum I wrote in was so judgmental! If they only knew the lengths I go to for my fur babies!

https://vimeo.com/158020865


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

they are going to be best buds in no time!

 

[nubonics]

Gorgeous pup. I love Great Danes but my wife would put me in a dog house outside if I brought home a dog bigger than her.

I know how your feeling about the welcoming committee. Some people just make things way to personal instead of relaxing and remembering that they were new to something once. The "welcoming committee", I say in good humor, can be a strong indication of the culture of the club/site.

I have a friend that rescues and rehabilitates Great Danes I will run the question by her. (She's 4'-8" tall and has 5 Danes in her house, it is freaking hilarious)

Thank you! We're moving to CO in the summer so we wanted a good mountain dog to protect our indoor dogs, so we chose the gentle giant because his bark and size would be intimidating to anything that tried to go after the rest of the pack It really was my husband's idea - I said to him, as long as we can afford it and we have the space I'm all game! Surprising GDs are only suppose to eat 3 cups of food a day as an adult.

Basically I was noticing his legs shaking when he is in a sitting position. At first I thought he was cold/nervous but I noticed it was happening when it was warm out. I googled it and Knuckling came up and it happens when GDs grow too fast; their bones grow faster than their muscles and ligaments. His front wrists are huge in comparison to his legs so I do suspect this is what is going on with him. Through my research - When a puppy is young, it can happen when they first switch food (we of course switched him to Fromm's Four Star - but one with a 21% protein to help slow growth). It can correct itself but it it doesn't correct itself it can be quickly treated (if caught early enough) with wraps. If it isn't treated then there is a possibility of surgery/casts etc. This is all caused from a nutrient imbalance - the shakes were occurring when we first brought him home. Since this is something that can occur in younger puppies (8-9 weeks) that they outgrow I really wanted to know when I should start getting nervous about it. He turned 10 weeks on Thursday. That's when the members jumped down my throat and accused me of not taking the condition seriously. I really wanted to say to them - "Calm down! I own an English Bulldog, do you know how much maintenance there is for that breed?!?!?!" But I stopped myself. I'll be the bigger person and just rant about it to people who care on EBN

The shakes are slowing subsiding now so I think things are correcting themselves but I bought some wrist wraps online just in case we need them. I have a vet friend in Philly who said she will happily show me how to use them if needed.

 

[Vikinggirl]

Aww he's gorgeous. I love Great Danes, but they would eat me out of house and home. Lol. My Grandson loves the Great Danes as well, every year when we go to Woofstock, he looks for them.

 

[punky]

I have always wanted a great dane myself... i think all your babies are very very cute.. bostons are a favorite of mine too.. oh heck,, i just love any dogs.. lol

 

[nubonics]

I have always wanted a great dane myself... i think all your babies are very very cute.. bostons are a favorite of mine too.. oh heck,, i just love any dogs.. lol

Thank you! Looks like you have your hands full with a house full of EBs! That is going to be the next dream!

 

[Cali Doll]

What a gorgeous dog!!!! I absolutely love Great Danes! I considered the Mastiff, Great Dane, and English Bully. I travel several times a year, and I was worried about the cost of boarding a Mastiff or GD. Knowing now what I pay in vet care, insurance, etc, I probably would have been OK! :D

Maybe one day I'll get a GD.

I'm going to need many more pictures and videos. Also, we need to have our doggy play-date, so that I can get some bully and Great Dane lovin!

 

[helsonwheels]

Beautiful puppies you have there. Ive raised Dobermans which your GD's feet reminds me of my Dobby's feet and nothing is wrong with your GD's feet. People have to remember GD like Dobbys or Boxer etc, the all have long skinny legs with big paws when they are young. They will grow into them. These breeds all look out of proportion when they walk n play. Wait till they swim.... man do they splash and not good swimmers either cause of their long legs. Make sure you're around them when they swim. I had to jump in a cold river that wasn't even deep to save my first dobby. Lesson learned on that dobby.