I have to confess: I love giant dogs. There’s something so comforting about a big, goofy, gentle giant dog. And I’m talking huge: Giant dog breeds include dogs that weigh over 90 pounds, or more than 27 inches at the shoulder. If you want a giant dog breed, you’ll need plenty of room for the dog both inside and outside your home.
A giant dog crate, while expensive, my be especially helpful in keeping a 100-pound dog off your furniture while you’re away from home.
Giant breed dogs generally have a shorter life expectancy than smaller dogs. You can expect a giant dog to live approximately seven to ten years, depending on the breed of giant dog. However, many giant dog breeds only live seven or eight years.
Health Issues
Giant dogs, unfortunately, have some specific, and serious, health issues. A giant dog can be susceptible to hip dysplasia and related conditions, and heart disorders. Giant breed dogs can be prone to heat stroke because of their large size.
Giant breed dogs also suffer more than small breeds from Gastric Dilatation Volvulus (GDV), also known as bloat, which is more common in giant dogs with deep chests. Bloat occurs when the stomach twists, trapping gases, and results in a swollen abdomen. Bloat is fatal to giant breed dogs if not treated, and is extremely painful. Giant dog breeds are also prone to hypothyroidism (low thyroid function).
Disorders of giant breed dogs come from growth that is too fast. This can be controlled by feeding the dog a specially formulated dog food that controls the dog’s growth rate, which is largely determined by the dog’s intake of intake and calories. You may have to carry your dog if it is sick, or in an emergency.
Moving a 100-pound dog
Consider smaller breeds if you can’t physically carry the dog you want. And I really hardly know anyone who can carry a giant dog.
You’ll also need to consider the special challenges of transporting Giant breed dogs. After all, you can’t just put a 120 pound dog in a dog carrier, and place it on the front seat of your car like you could with a Poodle. Giant dog crates are incredibly difficult to carry, especially when they contain a 90 pound giant dog breed!
Giant dog breeds include:
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- Akita
- American Bandogge
- American Mastiff
- Anatolian Shepherd
- Aryan Molossus
- Beauceron
- Bernese Mountain Dog
- Black Russian Terrier
- Bloodhound
- Borzoi
- Bouvier des Flanders
- Bullmastiff
- Cane Corso
- Caucasian Mountain Dog
- Central Asian Oovcharka
- Doberman Pinschers
- Dogo Argentino
- Dogue De Bordeaux
- English Mastiff
- Giant Alaskan Malamute
- Great Dane
- Great Pyrenees
- Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
- Irish Wolfhound
- Kuvasz
- Leonberger
- Neapolitan Mastiff
- Newfoundland
- Pyrenean Mastiff
- Rottweiler
- Saint Bernard
- Scottish Deerhound
- Shiloh Shepherd
- Spanish Mastiff
- Tibetan Mastiff
- Tosa Inu
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