What are the Best Dog Foods for Great Danes?
The elegant Great Dane is well renowned for its immense size, a trait that is only transcended by its incredible heart. A wonderful family companion, the Great Dane, like many giant breeds, has a shorter life expectancy than average. To help promote optimal health and wellness in this gentle giant, the Great Dane should be fed a diet that has been formulated specifically to address the challenges faced by breeds of this size. Whether you're feeding a puppy, an adult, or a senior Great Dane, you’ll find our list of top diet recommendations has something sure to keep your pooch in tip top health.
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Breed Info
Breed Group:Working | AKC Great Dane Profile
Ideal Weight:Female Adult: 110 to 140 pounds
Male Adult: 139 to 176 pounds
Exercise Need:45 to 75 minutes per day
Breed Summary
Though a swift and skilled hunter, the Great Dane has a soft temperament that makes it well-suited to life as a family pet. A breed with moderate activity requirements, the sweet and gentle Great Dane needs room to roam, and thus, is not an ideal candidate for apartment life.
The Great Dane has often been referred to as a gentle giant, a handle that fits this breed quite well. The breed is affectionate and loving towards its family. Though the Great Dane loves people, its imposing looks and bark make it an excellent choice for a guard dog. Great Danes will eagerly guard their home and hearth, protecting those he or she loves most from harm.
The Great Dane is not typically predisposed to weight gain. However, free feeding is strongly discouraged. A high quality diet based on lean-meat based proteins is ideal to keep this sleek and sophisticated dog looking and feeling its very best.
Physical Traits
Strong, short-coated, muscular, giant, athletic
Personality Traits
Affectionate, gentle, friendly, loving, alert
Health Considerations
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Sadly, the Great Danes is a breed that is naturally predisposed to a number of health conditions, many of which are life-threatening. A high quality, well-balanced diet based on lean meat-based proteins can help lay a foundation for good health for the Great Danes.
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ACL Injuries
Cruciate tears in the back legs can be a common problem in large breed dogs like the Great Danes. Maintaining a healthy weight and engaging in regular, appropriate exercise can help prevent this type of injury from occurring.
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Bloat (Gastric Torsion)
bloat, a life-threatening condition that is often fatal, is a problem that can be common to the Great Danes. Though it is not known what factors must combine to result in this condition, experts agree that eating too rapidly and too much may contribute to the development of the problem. For this reason, a giant breed food formulation is often recommended. Among the suggestions we have are:
Recommendations:
Avoid elevated feeding・ Avoid feeding just one meal per day・ Encourage slow eating・ Feed large bites or kibble・ Feed probiotics and prebiotic fibers・ Restrict activity after eating -
Heart Health
Every dog deserves a healthy heart, and there's a lot of nutritional science still developing around heart conditions and their ties with diet. But overall, we do know that certain diet attributes and ingredients are especially good for the heart in canines, which include:
Recommendations:
Antioxidants・ Carnitine・ Complete protein・ Low sodium・ Omega-3 fatty acids・ Taurine -
Hip Dysplasia
Hip dysplasia is a condition that occurs when the hip joint does not rest properly in the socket, leading to degeneration of the bone. This problem can be extremely painful and will potentially lead to lameness in the Great Danes. Dysplasia is generally hereditary, but keeping the Great Danes at a healthy weight can help mitigate hip dysplasia discomfort. A healthy, well-balanced diet fortified with supplements to support joint health can help a lot. We recommend diets contain:
Recommendations:
Antioxidants・ Chondroitin・ Glucosamine・ Green Mussel・ Methylsulfonymethane・ Omega-3 from Fish Oil・ Taurine・ Turmeric・ Vitamin E
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Are Fresh Food Diets Good for Great Danes?
Only if they’re properly balanced.
Many well-intentioned Great Danes parents spend a lot of time preparing meals at home, but health benefits are lost if meals aren’t properly portioned and balanced with all the nutrients dogs need. Recently, a few companies have done an excellent job ensuring accurate portions and nutrient balance by delivering pre-prepped fresh meals customized to the size and needs of your dog. Farmer’s Dog, Ollie and Nom Nom have each been approved by our nutrition team as delivering truly quality and well-balanced meals. They can be a little expensive (usually 3-4x more per day than kibble), but many find the added health benefits worth the cost. They do offer discounts to new customers, though, if you’d like to try one out.
Pros and Cons of Fresh Food Diets
✓ Diets balanced by Nutritionists・ ✓ Customized portions for weight control・ ✓ Superior digestive and immune health ・✕ More expensive than standard dog food
Foods We Recommend for Great Danes Puppies
How long do Great Daness need puppy food?
Until they're 12 to 24 months old.
Great Danes are very focused on growing, and how we feed them should help them do just that. Since they have so much growing to do, they need higher amounts of nutrients than adult dogs, especially proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals and — don’t forget — water. It’s still important to not overfeed puppies, so make sure to portion food and keep treats to no more than 10% of their caloric intake. Since balance is so important, we recommend that your young Great Danes is eating food that is made just for puppies from a reputable brand.
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Foods We Recommend for Great Danes Adults
When should Great Danes start transitioning to adult food?
When they're 12 to 24 months old
From a nutrition standpoint, Great Danes become adults once they reach about 90% of their expected weight. Once adults, our two key nutrition goals are balance and maintenance. We want balance because a dog’s body is responsible for a lot of things, like digestion, fighting infection, keeping muscles strong, and chasing squirrels. These are all important tasks, so we want to make sure each body function gets its share of nutrients. We also need to maintain a healthy weight. Underfed dogs are at risk for malnourishment, and overfed dogs can become obese — both of which lead to even worse problems for a Great Dane
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Foods We Recommend for Great Danes Seniors
When should Great Danes start transitioning to senior food?
All dogs can age differently, but giant dogs like Great Danes can start to benefit from senior food around 5 to 6 years old
Ever watch kids running around the playground and wish you had that energy again? Yeah. Dogs get there, too. The metabolic processes in senior Great Danes slow down as they age, which often means they aren’t needing quite as many calories as they did in their prime. Smart dog food companies have formulated senior diets to ease up on calories but still help them feel full and give them adequate maintenance protein. Still, like humans, everybody is different. Sometimes older dogs need just as many calories, or more, depending on how their bodies progress. So keep a close eye on their body condition, and look for dog foods made for seniors.
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Affiliate Disclosure:
We do not accept money to recommend pet foods. However, we do receive referral fees from online retailers (such as Chewy or Amazon) on qualifying purchases. Our recommendations are neutral, and diet recommendations are made without considering whether we will receive a referral fee.