General Appearance
The Great Dane combines, in its regal appearance, dignity, strength and elegance with
great size and a powerful, well-formed, smoothly muscled body. It is one of the giant
working breeds, but is unique in that its general conformation must be so well balanced
that it never appears clumsy, and shall move with a long reach and powerful drive.
It is always a unit-the Apollo of dogs. A Great Dane must be spirited, courageous,
never timid; always friendly and dependable. This physical and mental combination is
the characteristic which gives the Great Dane the majesty possessed by no other breed.
It is particularly true of this breed that there is an impression of great masculinity
in dogs, as compared to an impression of femininity in bitches. Lack of true Dane breed
type, as defined in this standard, is a serious fault.
Size, Proportion, Substance
The male should appear more massive throughout than the bitch, with larger frame and
heavier bone. In the ratio between length and height, the Great Dane should be square.
In bitches, a somewhat longer body is permissible, providing she is well proportioned
to her height. Coarseness or lack of substance are equally undesirable. The male shall
not be less than 30 inches at the shoulders, but it is preferable that he be 32 inches
or more, providing he is well proportioned to his height. The female shall not be less
than 28 inches at the shoulders, but it is preferable that she be 30 inches or more,
providing she is well proportioned to her height. Danes under minimum height must be disqualified.
Head
The head shall be rectangular, long, distinguished, expressive, finely chiseled,
especially below the eyes. Seen from the side, the Dane’s forehead must be sharply set off
from the bridge of the nose, (a strongly pronounced stop). The plane of the skull and the
plane of the muzzle must be straight and parallel to one another. The skull plane under and
to the inner point of the eye must slope without any bony protuberance in a smooth line to
a full square jaw with a deep muzzle (fluttering lips are undesirable). The masculinity of
the male is very pronounced in structural appearance of the head. The bitch’s head is more
delicately formed. Seen from the top, the skull should have parallel sides and the bridge
of the nose should be as broad as possible. The cheek muscles should not be prominent.
The length from the tip of the nose to the center of the stop should be equal to the length
from the center of the stop to the rear of the slightly developed occiput. The head should
be angular from all sides and should have flat planes with dimensions in proportion to the
size of the Dane. Whiskers may be trimmed or left natural.
Eyes- shall be medium size, deep set, and dark, with a lively intelligent expression.
The eyelids are almond-shaped and relatively tight, with well developed brows. Haws and
mongolian eyes are serious faults. In harlequins, the eyes should be dark; light colored eyes,
eyes of different colors and walleyes are permitted but not desirable.
Ears -shall be high set, medium in size and of moderate thickness, folded forward close
to the cheek. The top line of the folded ear should be level with the skull. If cropped, the ear
length is in proportion to the size of the head and the ears are carried uniformly erect.
Nose - shall be black, except in the blue Dane, where it is a dark blue-black.
A black spotted nose is permitted on the harlequin; a pink colored nose is not desirable.
A split nose is a disqualification.
Teeth - shall be strong, well developed, clean and with full dentition.
The incisors of the lower jaw touch very lightly the bottoms of the inner surface of the
upper incisors (scissors bite). An undershot jaw is a very serious fault. Overshot or wry
bites are serious faults. Even bites, misaligned or crowded incisors are minor faults.
Neck, Topline, Body
The neck shall be firm, high set, well arched, long and muscular. From the nape, it should
gradually broaden and flow smoothly into the withers. The neck underline should be clean.
Withers shall slope smoothly into a short level back with a broad loin. The chest shall be
broad, deep and well muscled. The forechest should be well developed without a pronounced
sternum. The brisket extends to the elbow, with well sprung ribs. The body underline should
be tightly muscled with a well-defined tuck-up.
The croup should be broad and very slightly sloping. The tail should be set high and
smoothly into the croup, but not quite level with the back, a continuation of the spine.
The tail should be broad at the base, tapering uniformly down to the hock joint. At rest,
the tail should fall straight. When excited or running, it may curve slightly, but never
above the level of the back. A ring or hooked tail is a serious fault. A docked tail
is a disqualification.
Forequarters
The forequarters, viewed from the side, shall be strong and muscular. The shoulder blade
must be strong and sloping, forming, as near as possible, a right angle in its articulation
with the upper arm. A line from the upper tip of the shoulder to the back of the elbow joint
should be perpendicular. The ligaments and muscles holding the shoulder blade to the rib cage
must be well developed, firm and securely attached to prevent loose shoulders. The shoulder
blade and the upper arm should be the same length. The elbow should be one-half the distance
from the withers to the ground. The strong pasterns should slope slightly. The feet should be
round and compact with well-arched toes, neither toeing in, toeing out, nor rolling to the inside
or outside. The nails should be short, strong and as dark as possible, except that they may
be lighter in harlequins. Dewclaws may or may not be removed.
Hindquarters
The hindquarters shall be strong, broad, muscular and well angulated, with well let down hocks.
Seen from the rear, the hock joints appear to be perfectly straight, turned neither toward the
inside nor toward the outside. The rear feet should be round and compact, with well-arched toes,
neither toeing in nor out. The nails should be short, strong and as dark as possible, except they
may be lighter in harlequins. Wolf claws are a serious fault.
Coat
The coat shall be short, thick and clean with a smooth glossy appearance.
Color, Markings and Patterns
Brindle - The base color shall be yellow gold and always brindled with strong black cross stripes
in a chevron pattern. A black mask is preferred. Black should appear on the eye rims and eyebrows,
and may appear on the ears and tail tip. The more intensive the base color and the more distinct
and even the brindling, the more preferred will be the color. Too much or too little brindling are
equally undesirable. White markings at the chest and toes, black-fronted, dirty colored brindles
are not desirable.
Fawn - The color shall be yellow gold with a black mask. Black should appear on the eye rims and
eyebrows, and may appear on the ears and tail tip. The deep yellow gold must always be given the
preference. White markings at the chest and toes, black-fronted dirty colored fawns are not
desirable.
Blue - The color shall be a pure steel blue. White markings at the chest and toes are not desirable.
Black - The color shall be a glossy black. White markings at the chest and toes are not desirable.
Harlequin - Base color shall be pure white with black torn patches irregularly and well
distributed over the entire body; a pure white neck is preferred. Merle patches are normal.
No patch should be so large that it appears to be a blanket.
Eligible, but less desirable, are black hairs showing through the white base coat which give a
salt and pepper or dirty appearance.
Mantle - The color shall be black and white with a solid black blanket extending over the body;
black skull with white muzzle; white blaze is optional; whole white collar is preferred; a white
chest; white on part or whole of forelegs and hind legs; white tipped black tail. A small white
marking in the blanket is acceptable, as is a break in the white collar.
Any variance in color or markings as described above shall be faulted to the extent of the deviation.
Any Great Dane which does not fall within the above color classifications must be disqualified.
Gait
The gait denotes strength and power with long, easy strides resulting in no tossing, rolling or
bouncing of the topline or body. The backline shall appear level and parallel to the ground.
The long reach should strike the ground below the nose while the head is carried forward.
The powerful rear drive should be balanced to the reach. As speed increases, there is a natural
tendency for the legs to converge toward the centerline of balance beneath the body. There should
be no twisting in or out at the elbow or hock joints.
Temperament
The Great Dane must be spirited, courageous, always friendly and dependable, and never timid
or aggressive.
DISQUALIFICATIONS
Danes under minimum height
Split nose.
Docked Tail.
Any color other than those described under "Color, Markings and Patterns."
Approved January 11, 2011: Effective March 1, 2011
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