by Scott Busa

Created on: July 14, 2008   Last Updated: July 15, 2008

German Shepherd and Great Dane in their pure bred forms are beautiful elegant working dogs. The Great Dane and all Dane-type dogs orgins can be traced to the highlands of Tibet. They were called Boar Hounds because they hunted Boar, but in the 16th century they were also called English Dogges. The German Shepherd is known for its ruggedness, intelligence and its ability to work a specific job. In 1889 Captain Max von Stephenitz registered the first German Shepherd named Horand on Grafrath. So what would happen if you cross these two awesome animals.

My dog Gracie is the answer. She is what we(wife and I) call a The Great Shepherd. Her mothers name is Jessie and a pure bred Dane and her Fathers name is Titan a pure bred long hair Shepherd. She is super intelligent and unlike any other Dane or Shepherd I know she loves to swim. She swims in lakes, ponds, rivers and puddles when she fits. She weighs about 100 lbs and her ears defy gravity as they are Dane size, but can stand erect. She has the Shepherd body and stance except her chest is huge and barreled. Dane muzzle and mouth with Shepherd eyes. She's got the Great Dane legs and feet and has brindle coloration to her fur. She has a long tail and when it gets going it loves to knock things off our coffee table.

She remembers everything you tell her except "don't bark". She hides her toys under cushions so no one else gets them and then retrieves them later when she thinks no one is looking. She is great around other animals as well, we have three cats and she is pretty much afraid of them. She got beat up alot when she was a puppy. Her one draw back is that she is a clepto. When we lived in Texas my neighbors had two rescue Danes and Gracie and them would bark through the fence at each other. The neighbors decided it would be a good idea to cut a hole in the fence and attach a hinged door so they all could play together. It was good at first, but then Gracie decided all of their toys were hers. She would run into their yard, grab a toy and then bolt back to our side with Achilles and Zeus(neighbors dogs) in hot pursuit. She would run inside because we left the door open and hide their toys.

This cross can be a viable new breed of working class dog. Fast, strong and powerful, very intelligent, beautiful and reserved. It's time to bring crosses in as pure breds as we know them have had their health and longevity bred out of them. Count Gracie out she is spayed.

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