Great Danes are giant-large breed dogs that are loved for their gentle and affectionate nature and the different coat colors they come in.
The Harlequin coat color is among the seven official Great Dane colors. It is a white base coat color covered with black or dark patches all over the Great Dane’s body.
It is the most popular Great Dane coat color and understandably Harlequin Great Dane puppies are highly sought after.
Read more on our complete Harlequin Great Dane guide to learn more about this stunning coat color pattern, health concerns and more.
So are you considering getting a Harlequin Great Dane puppy or do you just want to learn more about them? Here are 18 Harlequin Great Dane puppy facts you need to know:
Harlequin Great Dane puppies have 3 mismark colors
A mismark is a dog whose coat colors and markings are outside the standard breed’s coat color. The official Harlequin Great Dane coat color is a white base color with black markings all over their body.
In addition to this, other variations of the Harlequin coat color exist although they are not official Harlequin colors that the American Kennel Club recognizes.
These Harlequin mismark colors include Fawnequin, Merlequin, Brindlequin.
Despite not being official colors, the Great Danes spotting these colors are still beautiful and they also do make good puppies to have.
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy is an intelligent dog
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are intelligent and can learn new behaviors quite quickly. They have an innate desire to please and because of their intelligence, this makes training easy.
They respond well with positive reinforcement methods and consistency in training to enable them to have the desired behaviors.
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy is far from their hunting roots
Great Danes were originally bred as working dogs that helped hunters during the hunting of wild boars. However, in contrast to their purpose in the 16th century, today they are not exactly used for hunting.
Today they are companion and family dogs far from the original purpose that they were bred for.
This has been achieved through breeding that has occurred over time for modification of their temperament from a ferocious hunting dog to a gentle affectionate dog that we have today.
Therefore a Harlequin Great Dane puppy will grow up to be more of a calm companion dog rather than a working dog.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are loving companions
Harlequin Great Dane puppies love being close to people. They warm up to adults as well as children and they are a great family dog.
Because of their affectionate personality, they love spending time with their humans instead of being left alone all day.
When you have a Harlequin Great Dane puppy, expect them to be loving companions who constantly show affection. The more time they spend with you, the happier they are.
See Also: Harlequin Great Dane Vs Dalmatian: Top Differences
They suffer from separation anxiety
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are people-oriented, and thrive on the attention from their guardians. They are hyper attached to their owners and their families. They do not do well when they’re left alone for long periods.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are highly prone to separation anxiety when you are away from them. This makes them super stressed.
But don’t worry because this can be overcome by training which helps them become less anxious when you are away. Training is important because yes you do have to leave the house at some point.
They are learners
A Harlequin Great Dane puppy is a learner meaning they will tend to push their bodies against their human companions.
This is normal as a show of affection to you, as one of the many ways they show how much they love their people. Also, expect this behavior to continue when they are adults.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies have easy to maintain coats
A Harlequin Great Dane puppy’s coat is short and sleek. The coat sheds moderately and this also makes maintenance of their short coats to be easy.
Maintenance of the coat includes giving the puppy occasional baths when dirty and brushing them at least two to three times a week to remove shed hair and to keep the coat healthy.
A Harlequin Great Dane puppy grows up to be the largest dog breed
Harlequin Great Danes is a Great Dane breed which is a dog that dominates the canine kingdom as the largest dog breed.
They grow to an amazing 120 to 200 pounds in weight with a height of 32 to 34 inches for male dogs and 100 to 130 pounds in weight for the female dogs and 28 to 32 inches in height.
So when considering getting one, be prepared to have a very large dog.
They are not apartment dogs
Harlequin Great Dane puppies, although small in size, grow up to be giant dogs.
They are not very well suited as apartment dogs because of their large size and tend to knock things over in small spaces as they move around.
They require homes with a lot of space and if possible a well-fenced yard.
They have a rather short life span
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy has a short lifespan of 7 to 10 years. This short lifespan is quite common for large breed dogs compared to small breed dogs.
Harlequin Great Danes puppies are a rare color
The perfect Harlequin Great Dane coat color can take several breeding generations to obtain. Breeding of two Harlequin Great Danes does not always guarantee that the puppies produced will be Harlequin because this depends on the coat color genes a puppy inherits from its parents.
Therefore because of this, it is considered one of the rarest Great Dane colors to obtain.
A fun fact is that the Great Dane and the Beauceron are the only two dog breeds in the world that display a Harlequin coat color pattern.
Because of this, they are the most sought-after because of their beautiful and unique color.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies have big appetites
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are large breed dogs that require a specific amount of nutrition to be able to support their growth that is suitable for large breed puppies. As a large breed dog, this comes with big appetites and food budgets as they continue to grow.
Care must always be taken not to overfeed them to avoid having an overweight puppy because this can affect their growth by putting pressure on their joints and bones which can result in orthopedic health problems.
A Harlequin Great Dane puppy is not a big barker
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy is a naturally calm and quiet dog and does not bark a lot compared to other dog breeds.
They may not be as vocal as German Shepherd dogs and rarely back but when there is a reason to bark such as warning their owner of an intruder, they will.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are susceptible to congenital deafness
Research has shown that dogs with a white coat color are susceptible to congenital deafness. The Harlequin Great Dane’s coat color is 90% white, therefore they are susceptible to congenital deafness.
Although prone to deafness, not all Harlequin Great Dane puppies are deaf. is a deafness health risk that they face because of their genetic makeup (genotype).
It takes at least 18 months for their bones and joints to mature
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy takes a long time to grow and mature physically compared to a small breed dog. This takes from 18 to months to 2 years of growth where the bones and joints continue to grow and become stable.
This is why they should not go through strenuous exercises during their early stages of life before 18 months to prevent injury to the joints and bones which can lead to lifelong orthopedic conditions.
They are not super active
A Harlequin Great Dane will naturally be playful as any other puppy, however, they are not very active dogs that require a lot of exercises to thrive.
They have moderate energy levels and require moderate exercise to keep them healthy and happy. A Harlequin Great Dane puppy only requires 90 minutes of exercise per day to be healthy.
Harlequin Great Dane puppies think they are lap dogs
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy will always believe it is a lap dog meaning they will tend to sit on your lap to feel close to you.
This continues into adulthood as a 200-pound dog therefore expect this to happen. This is one of the ways they show affection. They love to be close to their humans so they will sit on you for this purpose.
They are the most expensive Great Dane coat color
Harlequin Great Dane puppies are hard to perfect to obtain their coat color therefore many Harlequin Great Dane breeders price them highly compared to other Great Dane coat colors.
The Harlequin great Dane puppy price is between $ 1000 and $3000. The price also depends on the Harlequin Great Dane puppy breeder that you buy your puppy from and their location.
The Bottom line
The Harlequin Great Dane puppy is a popular very Great Dane coat color. Their coat color is fascinating and unique which makes them very desirable.
They are the most expensive Great Dane puppy due to this unique coat color. In addition to this, they have a pleasant personality as affectionate, sweet-natured, and loving puppies that grow up to be good companions.
So what’s not to love about a Harlequin Great Dane puppy? They have many traits that make them adorable puppies to have.