We have a grown, male Great Dane who is usually confined to his own large space outside when we aren't home. Two weeks ago we got a Yorkshire Terrier for an inside dog. We introduced the dogs, there was no aggression on the Great Dane's part, all seemed well. I took the Yorkie out last night, the Great Dane cleared his fence and came after the Yorkie. There was nothing I could do, I got him away one time and the Great Dane grabbed him out of my arms and took off. The Yorkie was dead in less than 2 minutes. I am heartbroken, and feel so bad. Has anyone had a Great Dane change like that? What in the world happened?

You didn't mention if the Dane is fixed. If not, other-animal aggression can pop up at any time. Territory issues will come into play as well.

Also, terriers are notorious for picking fights. They were bred for fierceness. Most of the time when you look at a terrier, think of a 14 year old boy's attitude.

Catsmine , Yorkies have to be the smallest terrier bred! Don't agree that terriers are bred for fierceness. Certainly schnauzers or Airedales are far to smart to have that trait. Have had both.

This is jealousy plain and simple.

Does the Dane spend a lot of time by himself ?

I agree about jealousy. You were all together when the dogs met; this time you were with the Yorkie. I'm so sorry.

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Originally Posted by tickle

Catsmine , Yorkies have to be the smallest terrier bred! Don't agree that terriers are bred for fierceness. Certainly schnauzers or Airedales are far to smart to have that trait. Have had both.

This is jealousy plain and simple.

Does the Dane spend a lot of time by himself ?

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Terriers typically have little tolerance for other animals, including other dogs. Their ancestors were bred to hunt and kill vermin. Many continue to project the attitude that they're always eager for a spirited argument.

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AKC Breeds by Group - Terrier Group


The more you know.

Why is the Dane an outdoor dog? All dogs need to be with their pack. Once you adopted him, you became his pack. It isn't natural for a dog to be left outside by himself all day. It causes a lot of stress, and aggression.

Danes are known for their love of family, for being gentle giants. But even the most even tempered breed can become violent if their needs aren't being met.

I'm so sorry for your loss, but I think this is a simple case of jealousy. Either get a dog that's a pet, and part of your family, or don't bring dogs into your home. I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but those are the facts. You shouldn't have outdoor dogs, and indoor dogs, they all need to be with their family, and that's you.

You need to include your dane into your life, and stop ostrasizing him to the outdoors.

Danes are people dogs. My dog is always with us. He has to be in the same room as us. Is your dog outside when you are home, too? A breed like that, left outside and away from constant human contact will be stressed, and jealousy would come knowing there is another dog in the household that gets attention, while he is stuck outside.

Sorry, cats, still don't agree after having terriers for such a long time as pets. None I had were like that. Yes, I know small terriers 'were' good ratters. Used in England on estates to keep vermin out of out buildings. I can't think of a more 'human' dog then some terriers I have had. You didn't have to dig up the information to prove a point.

Addendum: Large breed terriers, like the Airedales, were used during the first world war to carry messages between the lines, mainly because they were the most intelligent breed to do this chore and get the job done.

My Jack Russell (small for her breed) is very aggressive and fast with rodents. But with any larger dog, she has sense enough to freeze or back away (but not usually retreat). She encountered an unusually large fox once and did the fastest 180 I've ever seen.

The Yorkie probably triggered the Great Dane's prey drive.

I had a 90 lbs. Bouvier des Flanders who kept stalking my Chihuahua. I had to give up the little one after a couple of days. My large dog is otherwise mellow and gentle. Does not have anything to do with jealousy. She has lived with medium and large sized dogs without any fighting or possessiveness. It was mainly the small size of your Yorkie that triggered this instinct.

Even after owning more than a dozen dogs, their behavior still surprise me. I'm sorry about your dog.

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Originally Posted by carolmonroe38

The Yorkie probably triggered the Great Dane's prey drive.

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That is a good possibility that had never occurred to me.

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Originally Posted by tickle

That is a good possibility that had never occurred to me.

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It likely didn't occur to you because of the vast difference between a Great Dana and a Bouvier de Flanders. Very different personalities, and very different prey drives.

Great Danes are very gentle dogs. They were originally bred to hunt, like most breeds were. But they didn't hunt small prey. Due to their size, hunting small prey wasn't possible. They were bred to hunt the big prey, bears, boars, deer, and other large prey. If they were to follow their instincts, which is bred into any breed of dog, they wouldn't go after small prey. It's not in their genes.

My cousin breeds Bouviers. They're a highly aggressive breed, not at all like the Great Dane which is known as a gentle giant for a reason. They were bred to herd, and as such, can become aggressive if that instinct isn't satisfied. I have a border collie, a non aggressive herding dog. But even a border collie can become aggressive if it's natural instinct isn't satisfied.

From the Bouvier owners post, it sounds like her dog wasn't being stimulated in the way it needed to be, which is likely why it attacked the smaller dog. Dogs get frustrated when their genetic predispositions aren't utilized, aren't exercised.

I am not surprised that a Bouvier attacked a smaller pet. I am shocked that Great Dane did. But due to the circumstances of that Danes life, living outdoors, limited contact to the family, it's not a surprise. Danes are very social dogs. They need to be with their human family in order to be good dogs. A Dane that is kept outdoors, ostrasized, will become aggressive, only because its needs aren't being met.

I'd bet money that the cause of all of this is due to how the Dane has been treated, or mistreated, because the OP doesn't have any idea that what he/she is doing by making the Dane an outdoor dog, is causing great stress and unhappiness in the dog.

On the prey drive note, my Dane has INSANE prey drive. Granted he doesn't go after my cats (they tuned him in real fast), but he has a very intense drive to course small animals while outside. There is speculation of the breeds that created a Dane, but a lot of theories include sighthounds, which would make sense in Apollo's case re: drive to hunt everything.
And on the other hand, I grew up with a Bouvier, who lived to be 16. No prey drive. She liked to try and herd us, but was exceptionally gentle and actually was my babysitter as a child (irresponsible of my mother yes, but it was the 80s before you heard of many dog attacks).