A giant dog breed is a breed of dog of gigantic proportions, sometimes described as a breed whose weight exceeds 45 kilograms (100 lb).[1] Breeds sometimes described as giant breeds include the English Mastiff, Great Dane, Newfoundland, St. Bernard and Irish Wolfhound.[2] These breeds have seen a marked increase in their size since the 19th century as a result of selective breeding.[2]
A Great Dane and an Irish Wolfhound, two giant dog breeds
Dog breeds described as giants tend to have more health problems than smaller dogs and have the shortest life expectancy of all dog breeds.[3]
See also edit
References edit
- ^ Glickman, Lawrence; Glickman, Nita W.; Schellenberg, Diana B.; Raghavan, Malathi; Lee, Tana (2000-11-15). "Non-dietary risk factors for gastric dilatation-volvulus in large and giant breed dogs". Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. 217 (10). American Veterinary Medical Association: 1492–1499. doi:10.2460/javma.2000.217.1492. PMID 11128539.
- ^ a b Galis, Frietson; Van Der Sluijs, Inke; Van Dooren, Tom J.M.; Metz, Johan A.J.; Nussbaumer, Marc (2006-06-20). "Do large dogs die young?". Journal of Experimental Zoology. 308B (2). Wiley-Blackwell: 119–126. doi:10.1002/jez.b.21116. PMID 16788896.
- ^ Mehus-Roe, Kristin (2005). "The Dog For You". The Original Dog Bible. BowTie Press. pp. 62–63. ISBN 1-931993-34-3.
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