Who's the Biggest Dog?

There is a lot of mystery and internet rumors around who really is the world's LARGEST dog. Three impressive English Mastiffs are vying for the title but none are confirmed on www.guinnessworldrecords.com at this time. It seems that Hercules, an English Mastiff from Massachusetts, might have been the official heaviest dog in 2001, weighing in at 270 pounds. Another contender for the heaviest dog title was Zorba, yet another English Mastiff. He resided in the United Kingdom and is claimed to be a whopping 343 pounds and measured 8 feet from nose to tail, clearly blowing Hercules away! There is a third dog, named Kell, also from the UK (what do they put in the water over there?) that was reported being the largest dog in 1999 by BBC news Kell was about 286 pounds. The Mastiff tends to be the heaviest of all dog breeds. The AKC description does not specify a weight range, but they generally tend to be 140-160 pounds! They are followed closely by the Neapolitan Mastiffs, who average around 150 pounds. That's a lot of kibble to feed! Out of all the dog breeds recognized by the AKC, Irish Wolfhounds are statistically the tallest - measuring in taller than 30 inches for females and 32 inches for males. While there is no clear winner for the World's Heaviest Dog title, the official Tallest Dog spot is currently held by a Great Dane named Giant George. Giant George was named the World's Tallest Dog by the Guinness World Records in February of 2010. He towers over other canines at an astounding 7 feet and 3 inches! Dogs this big need the world's biggest treat, don't they? In October of 2009, the Canine Cookie Company baked a Scooby Snack fit for these gentle giants and earned themselves a spot in the Guinness World Record book. This biscuit measures 11 feet by 4 feet and weighs 231 pounds! Snack on that!