Rehoming guide
How to rehome your Great Dane
Checked 6 October 2026
The short answer
Finding the right next home for a Great Dane takes some planning, and two UK Great Dane rescues take calls from owners. A dog this size needs a home that has thought it through: PDSA says Great Danes need a lot of space inside and out and don't really suit smaller homes. Be honest in your listing about your dog's size, health and how they cope on their own.
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Why Great Danes end up needing a new home
We haven't found a UK source that says why Great Danes are given up, so here is what the sources say they need. The Royal Kennel Club lists the Great Dane as extra large, needing more than two hours of exercise a day and suiting a large house with a large garden. The breed standard sets minimums of 76 cm and 54 kg for dogs over 18 months, and 71 cm and 46 kg for bitches, and PDSA says the breed does not really suit smaller homes.
PDSA also says Great Danes form strong attachments to their families and may not cope even with short periods alone, and that a lonely, anxious Great Dane might be destructive. It lists health conditions the breed may develop, including GDV (where the stomach twists) and a heart disease called dilated cardiomyopathy, and The Royal Kennel Club gives a lifespan of under 10 years. Space, time at home and vet care all weigh more with a giant breed.
None of this makes your dog a problem, or you a bad owner. It usually means the match didn’t fit, and a careful rehoming fixes exactly that.
What to tell adopters about your Great Dane
Size and space. Give your dog's weight and height if you know them, and describe the home they live in now. PDSA says Great Danes need a lot of space inside and out, and suggests moving valuables out of reach of a wagging tail.
Being left alone. PDSA says Great Danes may not cope even with short periods alone. Tell adopters how long your dog is left now, and how they behave when they are.
Children and other pets. PDSA says Great Danes may not be ideal with smaller children because they can knock people over by accident, and that the breed has a fairly strong prey drive. Say how your dog is with children, dogs and cats, from what you have actually seen.
Health and vet records. PDSA lists conditions including GDV, hip and elbow dysplasia, dilated cardiomyopathy and Wobbler syndrome. Hand over your dog's vet records and any diagnosis, so the new home can plan care and insurance.
Great Dane rescues that take owners’ dogs
National Great Dane Rescuedogs · Postal address in Calne, Wiltshire
Its contact page says it is "here 365 days of the year" for owners who need their Great Dane rehomed; call the helpline shown there during office hours. Its rehoming page says dogs are "assessed and prepared for rehoming".
Daneline International Charitable Foundationdogs · Foster homes across the UK
Phone the number on its homepage to talk about "gifting a Dane into our care", its phrase for handing a dog over. Every Dane it takes in is assessed in an approved foster home, "NOT in kennels".
National charities that take any breed
Dogs Trustdogs
Two routes: Homestay, where your dog stays with you while Dogs Trust finds a new home (it says Homestay dogs "generally find a new home within two weeks"), or a kennel or foster place, which "could take a few weeks". Giving up a dog to Dogs Trust is free, and it aims to reply within 72 hours. Start with a call on 0300 303 2188 or its online form.
Blue Crossdogs, cats, rabbits
Home Direct keeps your pet with you while Blue Cross finds a new owner. That is "the quickest way", it says, because space in its own kennels, cattery and small pet units "is very limited". It takes dogs, cats, rabbits and small pets. Call pet admissions on 0300 777 1960 or use its online form.
Should you charge a rehoming fee?
You can ask for a rehoming fee, paid at the handover after the adopter has met your pet, and never as a deposit beforehand. PAAG's worry with "free to good home" adverts is that people may take an animal on impulse and that a free advert "may devalue an animal" (PAAG). A fee does make the handover a sale, though, so animals can't go to anyone under 16 and you should be honest about your pet's health.
How listing your Great Dane on LocalPetFinder works
- Fill in the free listing form. Photos, age, health, how your dog is with children and other animals, and an honest description. It takes about ten minutes, and your dog stays at home with you.
- A person checks it, usually within a day, before it goes live.
- Your Great Dane appears next to rescue dogs on the Great Danes pages for your city (Ashford, Barnsley, Barrow-in-Furness, Bath and North East Somerset, Belfast, Birmingham, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, Bradford, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Bury St Edmunds, Canterbury, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chester, Chesterfield, Chippenham, Colchester, Coventry, Crawley, Darlington, Derby, Doncaster, Dover, Dumfries and Galloway, Durham, Eastbourne, Edinburgh, Exeter, Falmouth, Folkestone, Glasgow, Gloucester, Grantham, Great Yarmouth, Guildford, Hartlepool, Hayle, Huddersfield, Ipswich, Kendal, Kidderminster, Kingston upon Hull, Lancaster, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, Liverpool, Llanelli, London, Lowestoft, Luton, Maidstone, Manchester, Mansfield, Margate, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newport, Newquay, North East Lincolnshire, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Oxford, Penrith, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Sheffield, Sleaford, Solihull, Southampton, Southport, Spalding, St. Helens, Stockport, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Swansea, Torbay, Truro, Wakefield, Walsall, Warrington, Watford, Wellingborough, Wigan, Wirral, Wolverhampton, Worcester, Worthing, Wrexham, York), marked as listed by the owner.
- You choose. Adopters message you through LocalPetFinder, so your email and phone number stay private. You decide who to meet and who takes your dog, and you hand over in person.
We take listings from owners anywhere in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Northern Ireland the new owner needs a dog licence before they take a dog, so ask to see it before the handover.
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Start your free listing →Before the handover: the must-dos
The microchip has to be transferred
In England, Scotland and Wales a dog can't be passed to a new keeper until it's microchipped, and the new keeper must update the database (England, Scotland, Wales); in Scotland the keeper's own details must also be correct before the handover. In England the same applies to cats, while in Scotland and Wales chipping a cat is optional. Check the chip is on a government-approved database and do the transfer at the handover.
No deposits, no couriers
Never ask for, or accept, money before an adopter has met your pet in person, and hand over face to face. A request for a deposit is the classic sign of a pet scam, and on LocalPetFinder it gets a listing taken down.
Banned dog types can’t be rehomed at all
It's against the law in England, Scotland and Wales to give away a banned dog. In England and Wales it's illegal to "rehome, sell, buy, or transfer ownership of an XL Bully" (gov.uk: England and Wales). In Scotland, since 23 February 2024 it has been illegal to sell, advertise, gift or exchange an XL Bully, Scottish guidance says it is unlawful to "sell, give away or rehome an XL Bully" (gov.scot), and since 1 August 2024 it has been an offence to own one without an exemption certificate. If you think your dog could be an XL Bully, don't list it.
Adopters must be adults, and you must be honest
Adopters must be 18 or over, and the listing must be accurate about health, behaviour, and whether your pet is good with children, dogs and cats. A good match is the one that lasts.
Rehoming your Great Dane: your questions
Tap a question to expand
Will a Great Dane rescue take my dog?
Ring them and ask. National Great Dane Rescue runs a helpline for owners who need a Great Dane rehomed, and Daneline takes calls about gifting a Dane into its care. Each assesses dogs before rehoming them, so have your dog's history and vet records ready.
Can I rehome my Great Dane to a family with young children?
Think carefully about it. PDSA says Great Danes may not be ideal for families with smaller children, because their size and strength means they can knock people over by accident, and they should always be supervised with children. Describe your dog honestly and let the family decide.
My Great Dane has a health condition. Can I still rehome them?
Yes. Be open about it and pass on the vet records. PDSA lists heart disease, GDV and joint problems among conditions the breed may develop, so an informed adopter will expect to ask, and will be better placed to care for your dog.
Related guides
Rehoming where you live
Rehoming guides for other dog breeds
Sources: The Royal Kennel Club: Great Dane · The Royal Kennel Club: Great Dane breed standard · PDSA: Great Dane · PDSA: GDV (gastric dilatation volvulus) in dogs · National Great Dane Rescue: Contact · National Great Dane Rescue: Rehoming · Daneline Great Dane Rescue