What color are you and do Great Danes come in other colors?

Britney S., age 13, Virginia

Dear Britney,

I am a fawn Great Dane. According to the Official Standard for the Great Dane, published by the American Kennel Club (AKC), there are 6 recognized colors for the Great Dane: Fawn, Brindle, Blue, Black, Harlequin and Mantle.

* Fawn colored Great Danes are yellow gold with a black mask. The mask includes the muzzle of a dog's face and their nose. The eye rims and eyebrows should also be black and the ears and tail tip can be black. Take a look at my picture...I'm a fawn Great Dane!

* Brindle Great Danes are, basically, fawn colored with black "cross" stripes in a chevron (V) pattern. They also usually have a black mask, black eye rims and black eyebrows. Black may appear on the ears and tip of the tail.

* Blue Great Danes are a pure, steel blue color. They are the same color (no black) all over.

* Black Great Danes are a glossy black color. They are black from head to toe!

* Harlequin Great Danes are pure white with black "torn" patches all over their bodies. Harlequins sometimes look like very large Dalmatians because of their similar coloring. However, Dalmatians have black spots and Harlequins have patches of black.

* Mantle Great Danes are black and white with a solid black "blanket" over their bodies. They have a black skull with a white muzzle, white chest, white neck, and white on all or part of their forelegs and hind legs. They have a white tipped black tail.

No matter what the color of a Great Dane, their body structure...how their bodies look, stays the same. There is no difference between a Fawn Great Dane and a Harlequin Great Dane...except for their coloring!

The color of a Great Dane is just a preference. Some people prefer Black Great Danes, some like Fawn Great Danes, and so on. I think it's a little like ice cream. Some people like Vanilla, some people like Strawberry, some people like Cookies and Cream! But, no matter what, it's all still ice cream. You just have to pick your favorite flavor!

Thanks for writing to me!

Your Pal,
Chief