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Need Dane info please.....

dpenning

Well-Known Member
Since we lost Daisy we are looking for a rescue pup. There seem to be quite a few Dane or Dane mixes out there in need of homes. How do they compare to EM temperament wise? Are they as protective as the EM? Are they sofa slugs or joggers? (We are of the sofa slug variety). :)

We are going to try to go the rescue route this time, if I can find one that thinks we will provide a good home. I've been turned down before because we have a doggie door so we will see.

Any input on the Danes would be welcome.
 

scorning

Well-Known Member
So sorry for your loss. I've always had danes, and when my dane passed in January 2014, I fostered an English Mastiff. So my experience is just based on the one mastiff, but many danes. In general, I found my danes to be more affectionate and needy. My danes want to be touching me, the mastiff just wanted to be in the same room. The danes were also more sensitive and high strung than the mastiff. My danes have always been active, but I think they acclimate to your lifestyle. I wouldn't say they were overly protective, but I've never doubted that they would protect me if I was threatened. When I was younger someone tried to break into my house and the dog alerted everyone about the attempt and tried to get the robber.

I would highly recommend fostering if you are unsure if a Great Dane would fit in your lifestyle. Fostering is how I knew I would not be an ideal home for an English Mastiff, and how I ended up with a Doberman for a second dog. Fostering is very rewarding whether you end up adopting the dog or not.
 

karennj

Well-Known Member
Yea, it's called make your own including a huge mudflap for the door! hehe. As far as activity, the Danes when young seem to be very active. Mine is 15months and is non-stop. It seems they are that way till 2.5 maybe 3. I know a few adult Danes that do agility!
 

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angelbears

Well-Known Member
Dawn, we are looking too. Every since we lost Cane there has been something missing....Kismet and Jezzy are wonderful dogs that I love just as much but a mastiff is different. Anyways, we too, tried a rescue and it has been a joke. I will keep you in mind if I see anything. Please do the same. Especially, if you find a special needs dog or a senior that just needs a safe, loving home for his golden years.

BTW, what I have heard about Danes is that they are usually very friendly but will defend you with their life. You may want to contact KrisRuger. She has both.
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
So sorry for your loss. I've always had danes, and when my dane passed in January 2014, I fostered an English Mastiff. So my experience is just based on the one mastiff, but many danes. In general, I found my danes to be more affectionate and needy. My danes want to be touching me, the mastiff just wanted to be in the same room. The danes were also more sensitive and high strung than the mastiff. My danes have always been active, but I think they acclimate to your lifestyle. I wouldn't say they were overly protective, but I've never doubted that they would protect me if I was threatened. When I was younger someone tried to break into my house and the dog alerted everyone about the attempt and tried to get the robber.

I would highly recommend fostering if you are unsure if a Great Dane would fit in your lifestyle. Fostering is how I knew I would not be an ideal home for an English Mastiff, and how I ended up with a Doberman for a second dog. Fostering is very rewarding whether you end up adopting the dog or not.
My newfies were not overly protective, meaning they didn't look at everyone with suspicion but boy howdy, when they felt like I was being threatened they sat between me and the threat and just looked at the threat "I dare ya". Loved that kind of personality.

Doggie door big enough for a Dane??!!
LOL, They may have to duck a bit to get through my EM size doggie door but we are building a house and can frame it accordingly. :)

Dawn, we are looking too. Every since we lost Cane there has been something missing....Kismet and Jezzy are wonderful dogs that I love just as much but a mastiff is different. Anyways, we too, tried a rescue and it has been a joke. I will keep you in mind if I see anything. Please do the same. Especially, if you find a special needs dog or a senior that just needs a safe, loving home for his golden years.

BTW, what I have heard about Danes is that they are usually very friendly but will defend you with their life. You may want to contact KrisRuger. She has both.
What do you mean about it being a joke? I have been declined by rescue organizations in the past because I have a doggie door. That is crazy, my dogs live better than many children in this country. If it is because you are looking for another Fila I can see rescue being a challenge! What makes me nutz is you have to fill out an application with tons of personal info before you even get to talk to anyone. I would prefer to go through a breed rescue as I feel they are better able to evaluate the dogs but I may wind up just trolling the animal control shelter big dog sections.
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
I will keep you in mind if I see anything. Please do the same. Especially, if you find a special needs dog or a senior that just needs a safe, loving home for his golden years.
QUOTE]

I've been trolling petfinder. There is a Dane rescue in Abilene that focuses on special needs dogs that happens to have puppies. Petfinder will allow you to search on Seniors if that is what you are looking for. It brings up the individual rescue organizations. Good luck in your search!
 

angelbears

Well-Known Member
Dawn, I have been told a couple of times that shelters rarely have true mastiffs. Supposedly, they call rescues before they let the public have a chance to get them. You might try calling shelters in your area and tell them you are interested in a mastiff, they might give you a call when one is admitted.
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
Yeah, I get that about shelters. I've put in an application with two different rescue organizations, the Dane one and a St. Bernard rescue. It will be interesting to see if either of them will work.
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
I wish you both luck. When I worked with boxer rescue there was supposed to be a person in the shelter that would identify what they felt were pure breeds and contact breed rescue before making the dog available to the public. I was dedicated and called/visited several times a week to make sure my breed wasn't there. I think it's both a good thing and a bad thing. A good thing because breed specific rescues are better equipped to evaluate and properly place their charges. We all know the quirks of our breed and as most of the dogs are in a home environment while they are fostered, the foster parents can really help place the dog properly and permanently. If you are dealing with a responsible rescue you will know what behavior issues the dog may have and will have support for dealing with any baggage. Okay. I guess I can't say that for sure. I gave everyone that adopted one of my fosters my phone number and email address in case they had a problem. That may not be the norm, but you *should* have support from the rescue.

The bad things as I see them:

1. Cost. Rescue is costly. It has to be. Transporting, vetting, fostering, training, feeding, etc all cost money. If your dog is healthy then the fee you pay will go to pay the bills of the dog that is not healthy. I don't know what maintenance on a healthy rescue costs, but I sure know what it costs for the unhealthy ones. My first emaciated foster cost me around $300 out of pocket, discounted fees, in the first week. My dh about crapped his pants. I had him for over six months and I'm not sure what the final total was.

2. A lot of people have a problem with home checks. Don't let that turn you off. A good rescue doesn't care if your home is clean. They care if you have poisonous plants in your yard. Your fence must be in good repair. If you have little things all over the floor that the dog could ingest, that's noted. Do the people have kids and other dogs and are the kids behaving properly around these other dogs? Did the cat come in the room and the person booted it away with their foot so it didn't bother me? (This actually happened and they were the only people that I ever "failed" on a home check.)

3. Ridiculous contract terms. Rescues bite themselves in the butt all the time and miss out on great owners. The spay/neuter issue is the big one. It makes no sense to me that if you have a young giant breed that isn't neutered you can't adopt an already spayed female. It's ridiculous. Vaccine protocols have changed, but I've been out of rescue for a while so I don't know if their requirements have changed as well. It used to be that you must have fully vaccinated every year or you couldn't adopt. No exceptions. I had an older girl that had a seizure disorder. Vaccines, other than rabies, were a no no for her. The application I submitted to adopt ONE OF MY FOSTER DOGS was turned down because she wasn't fully vaccinated. I was good enough to foster, but not good enough to adopt. Go figure.

Some rescues are more willing to work with you than others. Smaller, more private rescues, in my opinion. I wish you lots of luck. And if they tell you no for some silly reason, see if you can't talk to them and explain. It may work. Or it may not.
 

Boxergirl

Well-Known Member
I wish you both luck. When I worked with boxer rescue there was supposed to be a person in the shelter that would identify what they felt were pure breeds and contact breed rescue before making the dog available to the public. I was dedicated and called/visited several times a week to make sure my breed wasn't there. I think it's both a good thing and a bad thing. A good thing because breed specific rescues are better equipped to evaluate and properly place their charges. We all know the quirks of our breed and as most of the dogs are in a home environment while they are fostered, the foster parents can really help place the dog properly and permanently. If you are dealing with a responsible rescue you will know what behavior issues the dog may have and will have support for dealing with any baggage. Okay. I guess I can't say that for sure. I gave everyone that adopted one of my fosters my phone number and email address in case they had a problem. That may not be the norm, but you *should* have support from the rescue.

The bad things as I see them:

1. Cost. Rescue is costly. It has to be. Transporting, vetting, fostering, training, feeding, etc all cost money. If your dog is healthy then the fee you pay will go to pay the bills of the dog that is not healthy. I don't know what maintenance on a healthy rescue costs, but I sure know what it costs for the unhealthy ones. My first emaciated foster cost me around $300 out of pocket, discounted fees, in the first week. My dh about crapped his pants. I had him for over six months and I'm not sure what the final total was.

2. A lot of people have a problem with home checks. Don't let that turn you off. A good rescue doesn't care if your home is clean. They care if you have poisonous plants in your yard. Your fence must be in good repair. If you have little things all over the floor that the dog could ingest, that's noted. Do the people have kids and other dogs and are the kids behaving properly around these other dogs? Did the cat come in the room and the person booted it away with their foot so it didn't bother me? (This actually happened and they were the only people that I ever "failed" on a home check.)

3. Ridiculous contract terms. Rescues bite themselves in the butt all the time and miss out on great owners. The spay/neuter issue is the big one. It makes no sense to me that if you have a young giant breed that isn't neutered you can't adopt an already spayed female. It's ridiculous. Vaccine protocols have changed, but I've been out of rescue for a while so I don't know if their requirements have changed as well. It used to be that you must have fully vaccinated every year or you couldn't adopt. No exceptions. I had an older girl that had a seizure disorder. Vaccines, other than rabies, were a no no for her. The application I submitted to adopt ONE OF MY FOSTER DOGS was turned down because she wasn't fully vaccinated. I was good enough to foster, but not good enough to adopt. Go figure.

Some rescues are more willing to work with you than others. Smaller, more private rescues, in my opinion. I wish you lots of luck. And if they tell you no for some silly reason, see if you can't talk to them and explain. It may work. Or it may not.

Editing to add:
Make a call to your vet. Let them know that you've put in applications to rescue and someone may be calling them. Just to give them a heads up and maybe make sure they have a note on your file.
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
Editing to add:
Make a call to your vet. Let them know that you've put in applications to rescue and someone may be calling them. Just to give them a heads up and maybe make sure they have a note on your file.

Thanks, that is a good tip!
 

DennasMom

Well-Known Member
My Dane experience is a mix - probably lab, maybe some pit... mostly all-american mutt (best guess).

He was a GOOF. Very happy-go-lucky, and willing to please - including being a good couch-slug (we are like you in that affiliation). Not much of a protector (he was pretty submissive), but he did alert us to the postman or UPS coming to the door. The lab part of his genes did come though pretty heavy, I think.

We have neighbors with Danes, and they also seem like big goof-balls. They do alert when people walk by, but are very nice and calm on the leash.

I would say, relative to an EM, very comparable - and depending on the specific dog in question - maybe a little more energy, a little more social, a little taller... but all in all, I think very similar and would conform to the household just like an EM.

We also have had some strange rescue interactions - first with our Dane/mix puppy, who was being shuttled around with his litter between multiple houses like checkers on a board. The foster mom let us come grab our pup before their last move - which none of his siblings survived... they all came down with severe parvo. :(

I would still try to find a good rescue group in your area, though. I think fostering would be very rewarding (and demanding, and time consuming, but, still... rewarding).

We have a group in our area: Old Dog Haven, that specializes in senior dogs. I'm hoping to become a foster for them once our senior cat moves on to the rainbow bridge. I don't want to put her through the stress of strange dogs in the house at her age (17.5), but I think Denna would love to have another dog in the house.