Large dog breeds
The ones that take half the couch and all of your heart. Here are the 35 large or giant breeds in the directory.
The rule
What they have in common
- Size: large or giant
35 of 78 directory breeds qualify · 43 don't · 0 have no data for a field in the rule (left out, named below)
The numbers come from each breed's page. Sources (in Spanish)
Big dog = big expenses: food, vet, bed, car. And space: check the adaptability bar before falling in love.
With their bars
The 35 breeds that qualify
Labrador Retriever
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
German Shepherd Dog Pastor Alemán
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Golden Retriever
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Rottweiler
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Doberman Pinscher Dóberman
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Boxer Bóxer
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Belgian Malinois Pastor Belga Malinois
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Xoloitzcuintli Xoloitzcuintle
- Size
- very small (toy), small, medium, large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Great Dane Gran Danés
- Size
- giant
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Saint Bernard San Bernardo
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Akita
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Weimaraner
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Cane Corso
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Dogo Argentino
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Newfoundland Terranova
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Neapolitan Mastiff Mastín Napolitano
- Size
- giant
- Energycouch potato
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Dogue de Bordeaux Dogo de Burdeos
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Alaskan Malamute
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Giant Schnauzer Schnauzer Gigante
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Bernese Mountain Dog Boyero de Berna
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Bloodhound
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctnot a guardian
Greyhound Greyhound (Galgo Inglés)
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Old English Sheepdog Pastor Inglés (Bobtail)
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Mastiff Mastín Inglés
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Great Pyrenees Gran Pirineo
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
German Shorthaired Pointer Braco Alemán de Pelo Corto
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Irish Setter Setter Irlandés
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Afghan Hound Galgo Afgano
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Collie
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctmiddle of the road
Leonberger
- Size
- giant
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Rhodesian Ridgeback
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsexcellent
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Saluki
- Size
- large
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctnot a guardian
Tibetan Mastiff Mastín Tibetano
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Airedale Terrier
- Size
- large
- Energymiddle of the road
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
Bullmastiff
- Size
- giant
- Energymarathoner
- With kidsmiddle of the road
- Guarding instinctborn guardian
What people ask
Frequently asked questions about large dog breeds
Which large dog breed barks the least?
Golden Retriever, Rottweiler and Saint Bernard (and 4 more): 1 out of 5 on “Barking”, the lowest score among the 35 large breeds in the directory with data. On that scale, 1 is “nearly silent” and 5 is “reports everything”.
Which large dog breed is best with kids?
Labrador Retriever, German Shepherd Dog and Golden Retriever (and 13 more): 5 out of 5 on “With kids”, the highest score among the 35 large breeds in the directory with data. On that scale, 1 is “better without kids” and 5 is “excellent”. Even with a 5, no dog should be left alone with small children: supervising them is the adult's job.
Which large dog is the calmest?
Neapolitan Mastiff: 2 out of 5 on “Energy”, the lowest score among the 35 large breeds in the directory with data. On that scale, 1 is “couch potato” and 5 is “marathoner”.
Which large dog is the easiest to train?
Labrador Retriever, German Shepherd Dog and Golden Retriever (and 8 more): 5 out of 5 on “Trainability”, the highest score among the 35 large breeds in the directory with data. On that scale, 1 is “negotiates every command” and 5 is “learns on the fly”.
Which large dog sheds the least?
Xoloitzcuintli, Afghan Hound and Airedale Terrier: 1 out of 5 on “Shedding”, the lowest score among the 35 large breeds in the directory with data. On that scale, 1 is “barely sheds” and 5 is “hair everywhere”.
How much does a large dog weigh?
In the directory, large breeds go from 15.9 kg (Saluki) to 90.7 kg (Saint Bernard) as adults. It leaves out breeds that come in several sizes (Xoloitzcuintli), because their weight range mixes varieties.
And for your life, which one?
A list narrows things down; the recommender crosses your home, your energy, your kids and your neighbors with these same data, in seven questions.
Other collections
More breeds for…
- Small 28
- Medium 18
- Fluffy 19
- Herding 9
- Giant 9
- for kids 39
- Hunting 18
- Calm 27
- Flat-faced (brachycephalic) 10
- Smart 18
- Affectionate 53
- for apartments 12
- that (almost) don't shed 24
- Guard 29
- Large calm 15
- The most common in Mexico 11
- that bark little 18
- Small calm 9
- Easy-to-train 47
- for first-time owners 28
- for older people 7
- for running 16
- that get along with cats 11
- for a house with a yard 31
- for hot climates 28
- All collections →