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Great Dane board and train in Gloucester, MA

Great Danes

Great Dane board and train in Gloucester, MA

Standing on its hind legs, a Great Dane is taller than most people, as the AKC points out. Every habit a Dane puppy learns grows with the dog. The work is getting the important ones in early without asking growing joints to do too much.

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Last reviewed October 10, 2026 · by the Dogtown team · reviewed by Gabriella Pope, Director of Training & Canine Behaviorist

Gentle giant

Easygoing, alert and enormous: a Great Dane's body outgrows its judgment

The AKC lists male Great Danes at 30 to 32 inches and 140 to 175 pounds, females at 28 to 30 inches and 110 to 140. It calls the breed easygoing, patient with kids and quick to make friends, and also an alert home guardian, scoring watchdog and protective nature five out of five. Trainability sits at three, Agreeable, the middle of the scale, and the AKC says that for a breed this large and powerful, obedience training is a must.

The AKC's Great Dane puppy timeline adds the growth facts that shape a plan. A Dane is considered fully grown between 18 months and two years, and a puppy will soon rival its owner's strength. The breed page sets the exercise rules: daily exercise appropriate to age, a brisk walk two or three times a day, no jogging or hiking until two years old, and no rigorous exercise around mealtimes because of the risk of bloat.

The same breed page describes dogs that follow their nose wherever a scent leads, so the AKC advises keeping Danes on leash and loose only behind a tall fence. Put together, that is a gentle, people-loving dog whose mistakes are costly purely because of scale: a jump that topples a guest, a lunge after a scent that takes you off your feet, a kitchen counter at nose height.

Up to 32 inches and 175 pounds for a male, per the AKC
Trainability 3 of 5; protective nature 5 of 5
Fully grown between 18 months and two years
No jogging or hikes before two; no hard exercise around meals

Program order

Size-proof basics belong in Foundation; Advanced takes an adolescent Dane out at a walk

With a Dane the order of the Foundation week matters more than the list. Greetings with four paws down come first, then a wait at every doorway and at the car, then a slack leash. A place cue gives a giant somewhere to lie that is not across the kitchen doorway, and a solid down-stay is a skill a tall dog uses every single day. Crate manners and early recall work fill out the week.

Advanced gives an adolescent Dane two weeks, and every outing in it happens at a walk on forgiving ground, never a jog. Distraction proofing, neutrality and structured socialization carry the extra days. Neutrality matters for a breed the AKC rates highly protective: the goal is a Dane that notices a stranger at the gate and turns back to its handler, not one that looms. Two coaching lessons hand the routines to you, as our board and train page explains.

Trainers quoted in the AKC's Dane timeline recommend front-attaching harnesses that do not affect gait and warn that shock or prong collars can create fear-induced reactions. Dogtown's programs are force-free in any case, so a Dane learns to walk beside you because it pays. We do not publish suite dimensions; ask at the consult how a dog of your Dane's height is set up for the night.

Joint-aware days

Training days for a growing Dane are short, frequent and easy on the joints

A stay never runs a young Dane into the ground. Training blocks are brief and spread through the day, leash work happens at a walking pace, and much of the exercise comes from sniffing, puzzle feeders and settle practice, which tire the brain without pounding the frame. Jumps, repeated stairs and leaping in and out of vehicles are kept to a minimum. Tell us at the consult what your vet has said about your dog's growth.

Meals get the same care. The AKC calls bloat, or gastric dilatation-volvulus, the number-one killer of Danes, and advises against rigorous exercise around mealtimes. Bring food portioned into the meals your dog normally eats, and tell us the schedule and your vet's advice, so training blocks sit well away from feeding. Part of the day's ration can be paid out as training rewards rather than added on top.

Expensive habits

Freedom too soon, a cute jump and an early jog are the costly Great Dane mistakes

A trainer quoted in the AKC's Dane timeline names the biggest mistake outright: giving a puppy too much space too soon. A young Dane with the run of the house practices counter raids, chewing and door dashing long before it understands the rules, and each of those habits is harder to undo in a 150-pound dog. Freedom should grow room by room, at the pace reliability grows.

The second mistake is the jump that gets allowed because it is adorable at 30 pounds. The same jump at full height puts paws on shoulders, so ask everyone to greet only four paws down from day one. The third is early mileage, jogging or hiking before two, which the AKC warns against to protect growing joints. The fourth is off-leash time in open, unfenced ground for a dog that follows its nose.

Grow house freedom one room at a time
No attention for jumping, at any size
No jogging or long hikes before two years
Leash on outside a tall fence

House rules

Widen a Dane's freedom slowly at home and walk it at dusk and dawn

Our trainer covers the cues and the timing at pick-up; the house rules are yours to keep. A trainer in the AKC's Dane timeline suggests walks at dusk and dawn and slowly adding difficulty to basic commands, a sit ten feet away in the kitchen long before a sit on a busy sidewalk. Dusk and dawn suit Cape Ann summers too, when a midday walk is hard on any big dog.

For practice spots, Gloucester's beaches open to dogs in the off-season, Wingaersheek on odd-numbered days from October 1 to April 30, but keep a Dane on a long line there, as the AKC advises for a scent-led dog. A bath for a dog over 90 pounds is $85 in our grooming studio. Dogtown Academy, private sessions from $94 or Canine Campus can continue the training once you are home.

01
First weeks home: crate or pen when unsupervised, and a light leash indoors if jumping returns
02
Next, one extra room behind a gate, with a bed and a chew
03
Then supervised run of the main floor, once counters and doors are reliable
04
The rest of the house only after several calm weeks without counter raids
05
Go back one step whenever an old habit reappears

At Dogtown

Around a Great Dane's stay

The training program, the overnight suite, and a bath for a very large dog before you collect it.

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Asked and answered

Questions people ask about this

Short, complete answers you can act on today. More in the full FAQ.

Is my six-month-old Great Dane too young for board and train?

Possibly not. Gabby decides the youngest age for a stay at the consult rather than publishing one, because vaccines, growth and how the puppy handles nights away all count. For a young Dane the plan matters more than the date: short blocks, work at a walk and plenty of rest. Foundation is usually the right first week, and AKC S.T.A.R. Puppy suits pups up to six months old.

How do you stop a Great Dane from jumping on people?

By making four paws on the floor the only way to get attention. During the stay, food lands at the dog's feet as people approach, before it can rise, and the greeting happens while it stands or sits. A jump ends the greeting. At home everyone follows the same rule, children and guests included, or the jump keeps paying.

Can my Dane play with other dogs during the stay?

When Gabriella Pope judges it ready, yes, in a playgroup of 7 to 10 matched by size and temperament. Hard sprinting and rough wrestling are tough on growing joints, so a young Dane does best with large, steady dogs that play slowly, and it spends more of its day on training and enrichment until it can share the turf calmly.

Does my Great Dane need special equipment for training?

Not a harsh one. Trainers quoted by the AKC suggest a front-attaching harness that does not interfere with gait and warn that shock and prong collars can create fear-induced reactions. Our programs are force-free, so loose-leash walking is built with rewards. Bring your current equipment to the assessment, and Gabby will advise what to use.

How much exercise does a Dane get during a stay?

Enough to be content, not worn out. The AKC suggests a brisk walk two or three times a day can be enough for a Dane, with no jogging before two. A stay mixes short training blocks, walking-pace leash work, enrichment and rest, adds play only when it suits the dog, and keeps hard activity away from meals.