Large Size Puppies

Where the line sits

A large dog is one you plan around a little. Roughly, the category starts somewhere around fifty pounds and runs up through the Great Dane, which is a different order of animal again. The practical test is simpler than the number: a large dog takes up floor space, needs a car with a boot or a back seat given over to it, and is strong enough that leash manners are worth teaching properly rather than getting away with.

Within that, the spread is wide. A Basset Hound and a Siberian Husky are both large dogs and could not be less alike in what they want from an afternoon. Size tells you how much room to leave. Coat and energy tell you what the days look like, and that is how the breeds here are grouped.

What the size gives you

Big dogs are calmer company than people expect. A dog with a long stride gets its exercise done efficiently and then commits fully to lying down — a Great Dane in a living room is mostly a rug with opinions. The same walk that leaves a small terrier still fizzing tends to settle a Labrador for the evening.

They are also easy to be around physically. A big dog can lean on you without either of you thinking about it, walks at a pace an adult actually enjoys, and can keep up on a hike, a run, or a long day outdoors without needing to be carried home. Children can play robustly with a sturdy dog, and the dog can take a game in the yard and then flop down in the middle of it.

There is a practical side too. Large breeds are easy to spot in a crowded park, easy to fit with off-the-shelf gear, and comfortable in the back of most vehicles. And when a big dog notices a knock at the door, everybody in the house hears about it — a Rottweiler or a German Shepherd raising its head is its own kind of reassurance, and it comes bundled with a dog that wants to be in the room with you.

Sorting them by coat

Short, close coats are the least involved to care for and the most comfortable in Florida and Tennessee heat. The Boxer, the Dalmatian, the Great Dane, the English Bulldog, the Olde English Bulldogge, the Rottweiler, the Basset Hound and the short-coated Labrador Retriever all sit here. A rubber grooming mitt once a week, run over the dog while you are both on the sofa, is the whole job.

Double coats are the plush ones. The Golden Retriever, the Bernese Mountain Dog, the Siberian Husky, the Australian Shepherd and the German Shepherd carry a soft undercoat under a weather-resistant top coat. It comes out in season a couple of times a year, and a slicker brush and an undercoat rake on the back step turns that into a pleasant twenty minutes rather than a chore. The rest of the year a weekly brush keeps everything smooth.

Curly and wavy coats hold their hair in the coat instead of leaving it around the house. The standard Poodle anchors this group, along with the Goldendoodle, the Bernedoodle, the Aussiepoo and the Whoodle. The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier belongs here too — its coat is the silky, falling kind rather than a tight curl, and it is one of the nicest coats in the whole size range to run a hand through. All of these settle into a rhythm of combing between visits and a full groom every couple of months.

Sorting them by energy

Working and sporting backgrounds set the top of the range. The Siberian Husky was bred to cover distance and is happiest with a proper outing — a long walk, a run alongside a bike, a job to do. The Australian Shepherd, the German Shepherd and the Aussiepoo all carry working brains and enjoy training the way other dogs enjoy dinner; give one a puzzle, a sport, or a routine to master and you have a very contented dog.

The retrievers and their crosses sit in the friendly middle. The Labrador Retriever, the Golden Retriever, the Goldendoodle and the Bernedoodle want a good walk, a bit of fetch and then the rest of the day near their people. The Boxer belongs in this group with an extra spring in it — Boxers stay playful and clownish for years and enjoy a garden game as much as a walk.

Then there is the steady end, and it is a genuinely lovely place to be. The Bernese Mountain Dog moves through the house like a slow-moving mountain and would like to be leaned against. The Great Dane needs less running than its size suggests and would rather be indoors with you. The English Bulldog and the Olde English Bulldogge enjoy a short, unhurried walk in the cool part of the day and then a nap in the best spot in the house. The Basset Hound will follow an interesting smell the length of a field and then take the afternoon off. The Dalmatian sits between the middle and the top: an old carriage dog with real stamina, glad of a long walk and a run.

Narrowing it down

How much dog do you want in the house? Fifty pounds and a hundred and fifty pounds are both “large” and they are not the same experience in a hallway. Standing next to a Wheaten Terrier and then next to a Great Dane sorts that question out in about a minute.

How much coat do you want to look after? A close coat is a mitt and a hand. A double coat is a weekly brush plus a good session when it turns over. A curly coat is a comb at home and a groomer on the calendar. All three are fine; the question is which rhythm fits your week.

How active do you want the dog’s day to be? If you already walk long distances, run, hike, or spend weekends outdoors, the working and sporting breeds turn that into the best part of their week. If your ideal evening is a walk around the block and then a film, the Bulldogs, the Bernese, the Basset and the Dane are made for it, and they will be delighted with the arrangement.

Growing into the size

A large-breed puppy spends its first year becoming a big dog, and that year is the fun part. Buy the crate the adult will need and section it off while the puppy is small. Teach leash manners early, while walking politely is still a matter of habit rather than strength — a dog that learned to walk on a loose leash at fifteen pounds keeps doing it at ninety. Do the same with doorways, greetings and getting in and out of the car; every one of those is easier to set now than to revisit later.

Large-breed puppy food is worth using while they grow, and steady, unhurried exercise suits a growing frame better than long forced marches — free play in a fenced yard, a few shorter walks a day, and swimming if you have access to it. Nails, ears and teeth follow the same simple rota as any other dog, and a puppy who was handled all over from the start makes all of it easy.

Come and meet the large breeds

Scale is the one thing a photo cannot give you. The difference between a Golden Retriever and a Bernese Mountain Dog is obvious on a screen and completely different when both are standing next to your knee — and a Great Dane puppy in person tends to rearrange somebody’s shortlist every week.

Our puppies come from our network of licensed breeders, and our team can talk you through what a particular puppy is likely to grow into and how it has been raised so far. We have a store in Orlando and a store in Nashville, and you are welcome to sit on the floor with a few of them before you decide anything. Find directions and hours, and if you would like to spread the cost, ask about financing while you are here. Every puppy here goes home with its vet records, its vaccination history and a health warranty, and our team will walk you through what those cover.