Many dog owners would tell you true stories of how smart their dogs are. But the Dane is no ordinary dog and only a Dane owner can appreciate the extent of this statement.
I have had Danes for over 25 years and I also have been around dogs and have been a close friend of families with dogs and I know dogs are intelligent; but a Dane is the genius of dogs.
Then there are those who probably never had a good dog, any good dog, and as such they could never see how smart a dog can be. For those, never mind a dog, here is a video of a bird... just a bird with a much smaller brain. See how it quickly understood it needed to make a tool, and how it solved the problem. Now if that impresses you, this is nothing by comparison to what I see my Danes think and do.
Many people consider their dog to be smart because the owner sets the standard low and doesn't expect much from his dog, looking at him as a mere animal, just a dog. Thus when the dog does something slightly intelligent, the owner is impressed. However, and only a Dane owner will appreciate this, Danes' intelligence stories are more than impressive.
Our Dane used to leave home every day at 2.55 PM exactly every day except weekends to wait for me at the school gate when the school day is done at 3. Hard to believe? I am sure you think so if you didn't have a Dane before (or if you had a low quality line pup.)
Some people could never believe it. After all, really... to estimate the time that preciously and to avoid weekends even if I am not home is truly something we would think is beyond animal comprehension. Well, it isn't; not the Dane.
We were all impressed by the Sheppard dog that crossed a highway and saved an injured dog. The case that really impressed everyone was shown recently on the famous TV show amazing animals. A Dane in his front yard spotted a small dog being hit by a car on a busy two lane street. The Dane pulled a garbage can that was left in front of next door house, pushed forward and behind the injured dog, facing the incoming traffic thus creating a barrier between the incoming traffic and the injured dog to stop traffic - and he did - and then pulled the dog holding him with his two front paws step by step to safety and got people's attention to help.
One Dane was locked outside by a child; he grabbed a piece of a thin stick from the garden and with his teeth turned the knob while with his paws pushed the piece of wood between the door and the frame and opened the door. Also taped by next door and played on amazing animals.
One Dane in Holland pushed the telephone receiver off the base and pressed the intercom bar, barking repeatedly to get attention for his master, an old lady who fell down the stairs.
And now this one is my favourite and it happened right here in Nanaimo and it's one of our pups at age 6 months at his new home. The Dane was taken to an obedience class almost halfway through the course. The other 9 dogs, different breeds and sizes, were in a more advanced stage of training while the Dane was on his first day. All dogs were ordered to lay down and a piece of cheese was placed in front of each of them and they were told NOT to touch it. The adults left the room and watched from behind through the glass window. The Dane raised his head, looked at the other dogs and seemed thinking what's going on. He figured it out. He looked around and couldn't see anyone watching, he stood up, went and ate each of the 9 pieces placed on front of each dog except his own piece of cheese, then went to his spot and lied down appearing as if he is the only one who listened to the master. Hard to believe? Almost something you would see in a TV cartoon.
Actually, talking about right here in town; the father of a friend of my son stopped by the other day to pick up his son after a sleep-over. Admiring my Danes' size and personality, he told me a true story about how his dad was saved as a baby by a Dane. His dad, back when he was a baby, was lying in his baby basket with the family by a small town river on a picnic day- and whether the basket was left too close to water or it was carried to the water by a young youth member of the family who was fishing, and the adult lost control of the basket - the basket was released into the river and started to float quickly down the river like you would read in the Moses story. The family Dane jumped in the water with no instructions from any one and brought it to safely to the family. True story, a real man right here in town.
When you look into the eyes of a good well-bred Dane you will see his intelligence, his affection and, because he is intelligent, he can be stubborn. Sometimes he would do something you told him not to such as not pulling his mattress out of the house to the yard - but if he is mad at you for lack of attention, he would. He knows he shouldn't and as soon as you step in he'll act guilty; but, he is just like a child in family seeking attention. My young Dane loves to take his large pillow to the yard on a sunny day to relax in the sun. In the video below, you'll see a Dane realized that pushing a lever inside the candy machine is not enough, he has to hold it pushed for a few seconds to activate the sensor.
I have to warn you though of in-breeding, usually puppy mills and some operations and you end up with an over in-bred line. There is a big difference in the intelligence level between such commercial operations and properly bred Danes. You would be surprized how many emails I get from families who had a pup from me, amazed that the puppy is house broken after just a few hours at his new home. The first night in his new home, no accidents and he would be telling them to take him out, leading them to the door after one day They always tell me how it took months with a previous pup.
The Dane is a person in the house and believe me, with sensitive feelings that can be hurt easily.
The Dane is no ordinary dog. There are dogs, and then there is the Great Dane.
Please watch the 3 videos posted on the right.
How smart is the Dane?
Anubis
And here are three videos I received.
The Danes in the first video are the famous ones you have seen in several movies. It's a Hollywood business by a woman who rents her Danes to the movie business. She talks about her experience with Danes.
The second video is a shot of a family Dane pet who figured out how to get candy from the candy machine (notice that it is not just pushing the lever, he had to hold it pushed for a few seconds in order to activate the sensor)
I have to comment though, as far as looks and size, even the Hollywood show Danes are not as attractive as mine. Just couldn't resist my Dane pride.
And finally, not a Dane, not even a dog, just a bird with a tiny brain. May be then you could have an idea what a Dane could do.
The 3 videos on the right are in
.mp4 format "Real Player".
