The Apollo of Dogs

This definitely falls under the category of pet peeves for me. There are a lot of folks with opinions. From my perspective, a lot of them are very wrong. You may fall into this category. If you do, I don't expect you to change your mind, but I hope to give you a little bit to chew on. "Type", loosely defined, is what makes a dog breed that breed, and not another breed. It is the unique characteristics that make is possible to recognize a breed. Breed type is defined in the breed standard, which describes the ideals, minimum standards, and disqualifications for a particular breed. The standard for the Great Dane is located here:

http://www.akc.org/breeds/great_dane/breed_standard.cfm

At the top of that link is the General Appearance section. It is a summary of what the dog should look like and sets the tone for the rest of the document. I've reproduced it here:

The Great Dane combines, in its regal appearance, dignity, strength and elegance with great size and a powerful, well-formed, smoothly muscled body. It is one of the giant working breeds, but is unique in that its general conformation must be so well balanced that it never appears clumsy, and shall move with a long reach and powerful drive. It is always a unit-the Apollo of dogs. A Great Dane must be spirited, courageous, never timid; always friendly and dependable. This physical and mental combination is the characteristic which gives the Great Dane the majesty possessed by no other breed. It is particularly true of this breed that there is an impression of great masculinity in dogs, as compared to an impression of femininity in bitches. Lack of true Dane breed type, as defined in this standard, is a serious fault.

Further sections go in to detail on a lot of the points. But I want to make a case based on this general description. In the dog world there are taller dogs, such as the Irish Wolfhound. There are also much heavier/bulkier dogs, such as the Mastiff. There are significantly more elegant dogs, such as the Saluki. Finally, there are more athletic dogs, too numerous to name. If I read this correctly (of course I do!), then the Great Dane is singular not because it exceeds those breeds in any one of these attributes, but because it combines all of them (height, substance, elegance and athleticism) in a single dog.

Truthfully, I think that the paragraph stands on it's own, but I will go sentence by sentence, much like a biblical scholar and give an exposition.

Sentence #1

The Great Dane combines, in its regal appearance, dignity, strength and elegance with great size and a powerful, well-formed, smoothly muscled body.

This is the keystone of the general appearance and, in fact the whole standard. When you look at a Great Dane, these are the attributes that should stick out to you. This is 3 of my four characteristics, but it's worth noting that athleticism is, at best, only implied here. The first impression of a Great Dane should always be that of a large, regal, powerful dog.

Sentence #2

It is one of the giant working breeds, but is unique in that its general conformation must be so well balanced that it never appears clumsy, and shall move with a long reach and powerful drive

This is the first point at which the Great Dane is compared to other dogs, specifically the other giant working breeds. This is a kind of vague category but the first dogs that come to mind are the Mastiff and Bullmastiff. The Great Dane, then, is compared against this back drop of large, more lumbering breeds. However, it is not stated that the Great Dane should be "more balanced, and less clumsy" than those breeds. The wording is absolute and imperative. Truthfully, this whole sentence is dedicated to making one distinction: a Great Dane is not just large, it is also athletic.

Sentence #3

It is always a unit-the Apollo of dogs.

This is short and to the point, enhancing the above statement. But this single phrase "the Apollo of dogs," is often misunderstood and misused. I have often heard this phrase used by breeder's to support their own emphasis on height, substance, or elegance. However, if you look at the phrase in the context of the sentence, it is not discussing any of those things. In fact, it is talking about the dog's overall balance. The Great Dane does not give the appearance of disjointed parts. It is put together and moves as a single unit, an Athletic quality.


Sentence #4

A Great Dane must be spirited, courageous, never timid; always friendly and dependable.

I often want to cry when I read this. Here it is, right in the standard. This is an optional quality, this is part of Great Dane breed type. This isn't worded hopefully, but with an imperative "must" and absolute "never" with absolute "always." A Great Dane lacking that friendly, trustworthy temperament is as poor of a specimen as a Great Dane lacking size or substance.

Sentence #5

This physical and mental combination is the characteristic which gives the Great Dane the majesty possessed by no other breed.

This statement draws the previous four together and establishes them as the differentiating characteristics of the breed. No single attribute is enough, but putting all of these together, including the temperament, is why Great Danes are so striking. If you don't include any part of that, you are missing an important piece.

Sentence #6

It is particularly true of this breed that there is an impression of great masculinity in dogs, as compared to an impression of femininity in bitches.

Here we have an important refinement, establishing that there should be a visible difference between the sexes. In generally, we seem to be good on this as a breed, although to the untrained eye all Great Danes seem to be males... :-)

Sentence #7

Lack of true Dane breed type, as defined in this standard, is a serious fault.

This statement has always puzzled me a bit. It seems to say that the the Great Dane doesn't meet the characteristics of the standard, that's a problem. Well, of course, that's a problem. That is the point of the standard. This isn't even a boilerplate statement, that I can tell. I don't recall seeing anything like it in other standards. So, since this is closing the general appearance paragraph, I take it as a sort of closing summary. I might paraphrase it as follows:

 If you have a dog that is lacking these attributes (height, substance, elegance, athleticism, mental stability), that's a big problem. The details on this are contained in the rest of the standard.

So... There is a summation of the Great Dane. We can argue about angles and all the rest, but we must, as a breed get these things right first.