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great danes.(:

20 8:59:45

Question
QUESTION: hello, me and my family are thinking about getting a great dane, and we have a couple questions.

1. how much in general will the vet bill cost.? my mom is worried about the vet bill..

2. will the great dane be okay around animals like chickens and goats, and potbelly pigs.?

3. will they be okayy with our shih-tzu and 18 month old nephew.?

4. is it best to buy a puppy or an adult.?

ANSWER: Kasadee,

I will try to answer your questions as best as I can. First of all, Great Danes in general, are not a healthy breed. So if you buy one from a newspaper, or a back yard breeder. You are sure to have health problems in the future. This is why buying from a reputable breeder is VERY important. Go to the www.gdca.org website to find a good breeder in your area and state. Or you can visit Danes Online to find a great breeder.
http://www.danesonline.com/breeders.htm

Now these puppies are going to be more expensive up front, but long term, you are going to get a guarantee on health and proof of health testing on both parents as well as grandparents.

Great Danes are generally great with other animals as long as they are raised with them. They are ok with small dogs, but you do have to remember that there is a huge size difference, and they need to be separated when no one is watching them. They are so big that they want to play but do not realize it.

They are also great with children.

I think the best thing for someone who has never owned the breed is to buy some books and learn more.

Also, visit akc.org and read about the breed. Talk to some good breeders and ask them all your questions and concerns. I am sure they will be more then happy to answer them.

You do have to remember that this is not an average size dog. They eat about 7-10 cups of food a day, and need to be on a premium quality food, otherwise they can develop bone deformities as well as HOD.

With a small child and a dog, unless you can find an adult that has been raised with this, your best bet is a puppy, just remember, they will not be house broken or crate trained most of the time, so that is something you will need to do once you bring your puppy home.

You should NEVER take a puppy that is less then 8 weeks old, and 10 weeks is the best age to get a puppy.

Do NOT get fooled into buying a "rare" color, some "greeters" what we call back yard breeders try to pawn off their merle, merlequin and white puppies are rare colors. These colors are not rare, they are NOT desirable and should never be bred, as they carry many genetic defects that get passed on. Most white puppies are deaf or blind or sometimes both.

I hope this answers your questions. And if you send me the state and closest large city to you, I can help you out and give you a list of good breeders I know in that area.

Have a good one!!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thanks sooo much.(:

and we live in california, around sacromento or chico.(:

i do find puppies on kijiji( now known as the new "ebay") that are from breeders, and seem healthy.. is that okay.??  

Answer
Jacq says good luck finding a puppy!!!
Jacq says good luck fi  
Here is a list of breeders in California. It would take me a while to map out where each of them is, but I am sure you will know which breeder is the closest to where you are.

http://www.gdca.org/california.htm

This list from Danes Online is by Color, and then by State, on the left hand side.

http://www.danesonline.com/breeders.htm

kijiji.com is not a good place to buy a puppy, most of the people on there are just breeding to breed. They do not do any health testing, they just happen to have two Great Danes and they breed them together.

You need to ask the breeder to show you proof from the Dam and the Sire have had health testing. You need to ask them for records from OFA for their hips, CERF from eyes, Thyroid, and Cardiac for the Heart. If you tell you "oh yeah the puppies have been to the vet and they are healthy" with this breed, that is not good enough.

This is a breed that suffers from a wide variety of health problems, and getting one from a breeder that does not truly care about the breed, is asking for heart break. These dogs do not have a very long life span as a breed, getting one from a good breeder will ensure you to have a dog that will like a long and healthy life!!!

Good luck and please update me on what you and your family decide!