Giant Great Dane named Minnie towers over com-pet-itors as tallest girl dog in the world
With a beautiful head as big as hers, it’s no wonder that this gigantic Great Dane prefers to play fetch with two toys at once…though perhaps that’s just because of her giant, fun-loving personality!
Meet Minnie, the ironically-named tallest dog living (female) in the world. Standing at 3 ft 2 in (97.50 cm) from the floor to the withers, the Herculean hound is owned by loving parents Ken and Lisa Nogacek in North Stonington, Connecticut, USA, who got the pup when she was just a tiny two-month-old.
Yet even though Minnie was mini as a puppy, her parents said that it didn’t take long for the Great Dane to swell to the size of a young bear cub, weighing 35 lbs (16 kg) before she’d even reached one year!
Minnie at a few days old
And by the time their sweet dog was two and a half, she was already huge – tall enough to peer over kitchen counter tops and hog up all the space on the couch.
Minnie at 10 weeks old
So one day when the Nogaceks went on vacation, and left Minnie under the care of their daughter (a Veterinary Technician, who also owns Minnie’s sister from their litter), she fell into a rabbit hole researching the tallest dogs in the world, curious if her canine step-sister had a shot at taking the record.
Sure enough, she did – but the family decided to let the dog finish growing first, finally submitting her to Guinness World Records in 2025 when Minnie was three and a half years old.
Her father, Ken, recounted how difficult it was getting Minnie to stand still and upright for her official measurements, saying that they had to use a measuring stick for miniature horses, and that they “had to bribe her with peanut butter, which is one of her favourite snacks.”
Nevertheless, it was all worth it in the end, when Minnie finally took home the record in June.
She beat out the previous record holder Lizzy (USA), who measured 3 ft 1 in (96.41 cm) tall in Fort Myers, Florida, in November 2014 – yet fell just shy of being the tallest dog ever (female), after the 3 ft 2.6 in (98.15 cm) late Great Dane “Morgan” from Canada.
Minnie is also just one inch shorter than the tallest living dog (male) in the world, Reggie the Great Dane, who just met up with the smallest living dog (female) Pearl the Chihuahua last year!
Read more stories about record-breaking pets in our dedicated Animals section!
And despite all the trouble, the Nogaceks are confident that Minnie is “very happy” holding the female record, because she always gets so excited when other people congratulate her for her amazing accomplishment – running in circles and wagging her tail like crazy.
Her family also appreciates all the well-wishes for their record-breaking dog, saying that they’re used to fending off uninformed comments remarking that they should get a saddle for their dog or asking if Minnie takes part in riding lessons.
Nevertheless, Lisa says: “Most people want to just pet her and look at her because they are just so in awe of her size and her colouring and just how pretty she is.”
Most days, the beautiful dog spends her time resting on the couch, running off her zoomies in the yard, or trying to sneak snacks off the kitchen counter. She’s so big that she can easily peer over the Nogaceks' bar-height countertops, so the family has to be extra careful not to leave out any treats that they don’t want her to snatch!
Minnie also loves going for long walks, going for rides in the car, and chasing after a frisbee.
Yet undoubtedly her favourite game to play with is her yellow ball, which Ken also has to throw along with another toy because she likes fitting two in her colossal mouth.
Minnie with her BFF, Boris the cat
The Nogaceks also own horses, including a miniature pony that stands shorter than Minnie herself – and their dog loves to accompany them to the stables or to horse shows, which inevitably inspires more comments about riding the Great Dane like a horse.
But Ken reminded us that Great Danes were bred as noble hunting dogs in Germany, belonging to royal families and chasing after wild boars – so for a gentle creature this great a size, it’s important to treat her with the ultimate respect.
“While she didn’t get the record for the tallest female dog ever, she is certainly the tallest living female dog at this point,” he said.
So congratulations on this terrific accomplishment, Minnie – you are Officially Amazing!