Who hasn’t watched Scooby-Doo as a kid and envied Shaggy for having such a coward yet loyal and loving yet cowardly best friend?What if you could have your own real-life Scooby-Doo? The answer might be yes, but for that, you must know what type of dog is Scooby-Doo.Scooby-Doo is a popular cartoon character created by Iwao Takamoto for the original series produced by Hanna Barbera. Did you know that Scooby doo is a Great Dane dog? Scooby is the central character in the cartoon series as well as the movie. The Great Dane, also known as the German Mastiff, has descended from a breed of hunting dogs over 400 years ago and is one of the largest canine breeds in the world. This breed is identified with a rectangular head and pointed ears with a lifespan of around 8-10 years. Well! Hanna Barbera choose a Great Dane to be Scooby-doo because they wanted to make the character of Scooby-Doo to be the complete opposite of what it looked like. Therefore, a real-life Great Dane is nothing like our beloved Scooby-Doo.In fact, Scooby-Doo’s characteristics are the complete opposite to that of a Great Dane. Although there is a real-life Scooby-Doo Great Dane named Presly who has made the internet go nuts over its uncanny resemblance to the fictional character. This Great Dane is afraid of everything and is indeed a real-life Scooby-Doo! If you’ve also wanted to have a Scooby-Doo mystery as a child, you’ve come to the right spot because today we’ll tell you all about the real-life Scooby-Doo - The Great Dane. Did you know that Scooby’s real name was Scoobert Doo. Scooby-Doo’s popularity is present across numerous countries across the world. Scooby-Doo’s name and catchphrase were inspired by a Frank Sinatra song. To know more about Scooby-Doo and his breed, the Great Danes, read till the end. So let us Scooby-Dooby Doo!After you are done reading all about the Great Dane Scooby-Doo, do check why do we say the pledge of allegiance and why do canine breeds eat grass.Scooby-Doo OriginScooby-Doo is undoubtedly one of the best timeless cartoons shows the world has seen, it has just the right amount of mystery, horror, slapstick comedy, and unique and fun characters with a personality and lovability factor of their own. But the question is how did these characters come into being? Why did Great Danes and no other type of dog become Scooby-Doo?In 1968 the cartoon houses got in trouble as, after decades of success with superhero shows like Superman and Hercules, they had lost their ratings as parent activists groups had asked them to tone down the violence in their shows. Different networks then tried to switch the shows with more children-friendly non-violence shows but soon lost most of their viewership.The success of ‘The Archie Show’ on CBS, however, inspired Fred Silverman to replicate the show with a bunch of teenagers and a dog who played in a band and traveled the country solving crimes in their free time. They were to be named the mystery five. Fred Silverman was a huge fan of dog characters and wanted a dog to be in the series, however, the character of the dog changed a lot of times, first, it was chosen that the canine would be large but cowardly, and then a small yet courageous character was adopted.Iwao Takamoto was, however, very determined to make a Great Dane as Scooby-Doo as he owned one himself, but went on to break most of the rules and gave Scooby-Doo a double chin, overly bowed legs, and other abnormalities in order to make him look funny. When the original movie hit the cinema in 1961, Scooby-Doo where are you? It was an instant success and so was Scooby-Doo.Scooby-Doo CharactersAs we discussed above the main plot of the amazing Scooby-Doo series was not always what we have seen, even the initial characters were different but thanks to critical input and radical changes made by Fred Silverman that the characters we so love today saw the light of day.Originally in the band version of the story, the characters were friends named Kelly, Linda, Mike, Geoff, and Linda’s brother W.W and a dog who was not even just a part of their adventures but also played bongos in their band. The concept was then revised a lot of times and then the show was modified to remove the band aspect and make the dog funnier and the center attraction of the show and not just a sidekick. Scooby-Doo’s name was inspired by an ad-lib that went ‘do bee do bee doo’.The characters were then changed, the initial characters, Geoff and Mike, were merged and were renamed Fred Jones, the handsome blonde guy who is also the undisputed leader of the gang and usually takes the lead in solving mysteries.Kelly was renamed Daphne, who is undoubtedly the damsel in distress of the show and even danger prone, but yet the gang always follows her intuition with enthusiasm to follow all the mysteries. Linda was renamed Velma, who is highly intelligent and well-read and usually has information on various obscure topics. Scooby’s nephew, Scrappy was also modeled after a Great Dane and was an interesting character that featured in the latter seasons. But Scrappy was different than Scooby-Doo in appearance despite being related as Scrappy was still a puppy and was created by Iwao Takamoto for Hanna Barbera Productions. The Scooby Doo’s catchphrase and the name itself were inspired by a Frank Sinatra song.Facts about Scooby-Doo dog breedAlthough we know now that Scooby-Doo is a funnier and almost opposite version of the dog breed it belongs to, you might wonder what the real Great Danes are like, well here we have some amazing facts about the Great Dane.The Great Dane, also known as German Mastiff, was bred in 1800 in Germany as hunting dogs to hunt boars, they are glorious large dogs with long legs who are also known as the apollo of dogs. Are you aware that the Great Dane is one of the tallest dogs in the world? And can weigh up to 200 lb (90 kg).Although the Great Dane, as the name suggests, are large, they are regal, beautiful dogs that are highly affectionate and social in nature, so much so that they are even great with small kids.They only live up to 7-10 years to age which is approximately 50 years in human life. Did you know that Scooby-Doo in the series was also seven years old?Although these large creatures might look big and difficult to manage, trust us when we say that they are such a people pleaser with friendly characteristics! They are one of the most docile and easy-to-train dog breeds.These mighty dogs are highly prone to a health condition known as bloat in which they get gas buildup and experience twisting of the stomach which may be painful to them.These dogs have been more than 400 years old and they were first kept by the German nobility who used them to guard their estates and palaces.These dogs require a lot of room to move around, stretch and exercise. Therefore they are more suitable for large country houses and farmhouses where they have plenty of space to play and run around.Dog Breeds that look like Scooby-DooAs we just discussed, brown Great Danes who are the original Scooby-Doo, are huge dogs with huge needs, therefore not everyone can afford to pet a Great Dane, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t fulfill your childhood dream of owning your very own Scooby-Doo so here’s a list of dogs that look like Scooby-Doo.Bull Mastiff: Brown bull mastiffs also resemble Scooby-Doo up to an extent. They are large domestic dogs that are very gentle, they were crossbred between the English Bulldog and the English Mastiff in the 19th century to guard colonial estates. These are cute family dogs as they are usually calm and easy-going, they fit well with families with well-behaved kids, but these dogs should not be trusted alone with small babies.Bull Daniff: The Bull Daniff is a crossbreed of two pure breeds namely the Great Dane and the Bull Mastiff, they too highly resemble the famous Scooby-Doo character and are beautiful designer dogs. They too are large dogs that need to be taken care of. They need a lot of outdoor space to stretch and exercise and therefore they are more suitable for large houses with big backyards where they can play and run around easily. They are loving, compassionate, and trustworthy pets that have friendly characteristics and need a lot of attention and care.The Mastiff Shepherd: The Mastiff Shepherd is a dog breed that looks like Scooby-Doo, is a crossbred mixture of German Shepherd and the English Mastiff. They are beautiful and mighty dogs, whose characteristics are usually unpredictable as they inherit any set of characteristics from the breeding parent. They are great guard dogs and unlike the fictional character are quite courageous.Goldadors: This cute and extraordinarily handsome dog looks like a cuter and younger version of scooby. They are natural with kids and very social with other pets. They can also be used as bomb detection dogs. They are very loving, highly enthusiastic, and fun-loving dogs. They are highly trainable and love to make friends, they also work efficiently as an assistant job and to help people with special needs. Although these are strong dogs like other large dogs, they too are susceptible to some underlying health issues like hip dyslexia, PRA, and diabetes.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for what breed is Scooby-Doo then why not take a look at why do we need elections, or why do we need a government. Editorial credit: ApinBen4289 / Shutterstock.comEditorial credit: WSY imagens / Shutterstock.com
Who hasn’t watched Scooby-Doo as a kid and envied Shaggy for having such a coward yet loyal and loving yet cowardly best friend?
