The Great Dane from Iowa is now the tallest dog in the world

There’s a new top dog on the block, and his name is Kevin. Guinness Book of Records confirmed that Kevin, a Great Dane from West Des Moines, Iowa, is officially the tallest living dog in the world.

Contrary to popular belief, a dog’s height is not measured while the dog is standing on its hind legs like a human. After all, you don’t see many dogs walking around town like that. Instead, a dog’s height is measured from the bottom of the feet to the withers, which is a fancy word for the top of the shoulder blades.

Using this criteria, Kevin measures in at 3 feet, 2 inches, which is about the size of a three-year-old human and just three inches shorter than the former top dog and fellow Great Dane. Zeuswho unfortunately passed away due to bone cancer in 2023

Kevin lives happily with his owners Tracy and Roger Wolfe, as well as his human siblings Alexandra and Ava. The Wolfe family are animal lovers, owning three dogs and four cats, as well as chickens, goats and horses. Tracy also operates the Merle Hay Animal Medicine Clinic, based in Des Moines.

As you can see, Kevin loves to hug, and he usually forgets his size, especially when the vacuum cleaner comes out.

“He’s terrified of the vacuum,” Wolfe told Guinness. “He won’t let him get within six feet of him! He’ll jump and run to get away from him.”

Despite his scaredy-cat tendencies, Kevin has a pretty fearless namesake, named after Kevin McAllister from the Home Alone movie universe. And he also reminds his mom of someone special, her late Great Dane Cora.

“They were both black Danes,” Tracy says.

Great Danes can be black, blue, yellow, gray and white and boast a variety of coat patterns. In addition to being as tall as a small child, Great Danes can weigh as much as a human, with the breed averaging between 110 and 175 pounds. But despite their enormous size, Great Danes are calm, loyal and easy to train.

If you’re looking for a huge puppy of your own, be sure to plan ahead, as extra large dogs can cost your family a pretty penny when you factor in vet bills and all the extra food they need because, well, they’re extra large!