Tallest dog ever (male)
Who
Zeus
What
1.118 metre(s)
Where
United States (Otsego)
When

The tallest dog ever is Zeus (USA), a Great Dane who measured 1.118 m (44 in) tall on 4 October 2011 and was owned by Denise Doorlag and her family, of Otsego, Michigan, USA.

Zeus weighed 70.30 kg (155 lb) and ate approximately 13.6 kg (30 lb) of food every two weeks.

When deciding the name, Denise wanted a big name for a big dog, whereas her husband wanted to call him a cute little name to. When standing, Zeus reached an astonishing 2.23 m (7 ft 4 in) tall!

Despite his height, Zeus had a very laid back personality, he got along well with any human or animal and was very gentle, he was a certified therapy dog that visited people at a nearby hospital.

Due to his impressive height, he was able to drink straight from the tap.

Sadly, Zeus passed away in September 2014 at the age of five.



Previous record holders

Giant George

Giant George tallest dog ever - former record holder

Zeus was one inch taller than the previous record holder, Giant George, who measured 1.09 m (43 in) and also lived in the USA.

Giant George measured 2.20 m (7 ft 3 in) from nose to tail and weighed 111.130 Kg (245 lbs) on 15 February 2010, and was as tall as two average golden retrievers.

George, as well as Zeus and many other previous record holders, is a great Dane (Great Danes tend to be the largest of the big dog breeds). When he was a puppy and he was bought form his owners, he was the runt of the litter!

His owner even wrote a book about how it was living with the largest dog in the world. For example, George used to eat 49.89 kg (110 lb) of food a month! A typical dish included a quarter of a rotisserie chicken, rice, yoghurt and dog food all well mixed.

Titan

Titan tallest dog ever former record holder

Before George, the tallest dog in the world was Titan, another Great Dane who measured 1.073 m (42.25 in) on 12 November 2009. 

The measurement of Titan was quite challenging, as stated by his vet, who said the giant dog was scared of the measuring device and was deaf and blind.

Gibson

Gibson tallest dog ever - former record holder

Titan’s predecessor was Gibson, a Harlequin Great Dane from Grass Valley, California, USA, who was only a few millimetres shorter.

Described as a gentle giant who worked as a therapy dog, Gibson was measured at 107 cm (42.2 in) tall on 31 August 2004.

Biggest dog meets smallest dog

A meeting of the world's biggest smallest dogs took place in 2007 when Gibson met Boo Boo, a female Chihuahua who at that time held the title for Smallest dog (height).

Shamgret Danzas

Last, but not least, the first documented record holder was Shamgret Danzas. This dog stood 1.054 m (41.5 in) tall when measured on 16 October 1984. 

This height was equalled by Harvey, another Great Dane from the UK, who used to sleep on his own twin bed.