10 Things I Have Learned About Owning A People Sized Dog

10 Things I Have Learned About Owning A People Sized Dog

1. Nothing is ever "yours". If you leave it laying around, its automatically theirs.  These dogs are like big kids roaming around the house. I've had everything from water bottles to the red boots stolen and taken to "his room". You have to learn to lock all the valuables up from these nosey guys.
2. If its soft, they're going to sit on it.  Couches, beds, piles of clean laundry, your lap.....it doesn't matter. These big guys love comfort.  I've resorted to stacking laundry baskets on the couch when I leave to keep him off only to come home and find him trying to squish himself into the chair.  His favorite trick is opening my bedroom door while I'm gone and sleeping on my bed. Nothing like coming home to a snoring Great Dane and a bed full of dog hair. 
3. The bigger the dog, the more feelings they have.  I don't know if this holds true for all Great Danes but my big guy is extremely sensitive.  If you scold him, prepare to have a moping dog for the rest of the night....and there is nothing more pathetic than a sad Great Dane. 
4. Never let your guard down when leash walking.  When you have a dog thats more than half your size, you have to be prepared when you take them out on the end of a leash. Just because they're calmly walking beside you one second, doesn't mean you both won't be chasing the neighbors cat the next.
5. You will always share your food......always.  Those eyes will get you every time and, even if you really wanted that last bit of pizza, the Dane stare will win out in the end.  
6. Dont underestimate how high a Dane can reach when properly motivated.  Just because you put your yummy dinner on the back burner where you thought it was out of reach while you take a quick shower, doesn't mean that he can't stretch up there and nab it in 3 seconds flat. 
7. There is no "sharing a bed" with a Dane at night, its more like "try not to fall off the edge while he stretches out to his full length".  
8. Be cautious when "rough housing" with a small pony.  That tail and those paws can really hurt! 
9. There is no such thing as "personal space". These dogs love and demand your attention constantly, it doesn't matter if you're trying to do homework, watch tv, or clean house, prepare to do with with a small cow following you and nudging your arm .  
10. You will never find a better friend than a Great Dane.  Deuce is the one I wake up to and go to sleep with, he listens to me chat away about my day, is always good for a laugh, and makes a great shoulder to cry on.  I honestly don't know how I would get through life without this guy :)