What Dog Breed is Scooby Doo?

For a TV show about solving mysteries, Scooby Doo hides its greatest secret right under its audience’s noses: What actual dog breed is the show’s lovable hero, Scooby Doo? Many fans have come up with their own quick-fix answers in the 55 years since the show first aired, but the apparent silence of the show’s creators has left us scrambling for clues that might give a hint of what Scooby Doo’s dog breed is, or where the creature came from.

Perhaps there’s some buried inspiration behind the cartoon character that will shed light on Scooby Doo’s true breed? Let’s dive into the facts and find out.

Is Scooby Doo a Great Dane?

Great Danes are known for a spread of traits, from their gentle giant sense of loyalty to their awesome size. But how does Scooby Doo compare to the stereotypes of this breed?

Size

The common assumption from internet sleuths is that Scooby Doo is a Great Dane. This isn’t a far stretch — Scooby certainly fits the great size of the dog breed, standing over half the height of his best mate Shaggy in the original cartoon series. There’s hardly another breed that fits Scooby’s super-sized mold just as well. End of case, right? Not exactly.

Color

Scooby’s dark tan coat, dalmation-spotted in black, doesn’t quite fit what you’d expect from a real Great Dane. The American Kennel Club has standardized the seven coat colors and patterns commonly found across this breed but, unfortunately for Scooby, he’s an outlier. He doesn’t have the distinct muzzle coloring common to Great Danes, either!

Appetite

Bringing it back in our animated hero’s favor, Scooby Doo’s appetite is a perfect match for the Great Dane. The notorious vacuumer of Scooby snacks boasts a seemingly unquenchable appetite, just like true, adult Great Danes who require around 7 cups of kibble a day.

Mythological Protectors

All dogs symbolize protection in some form. But Great Danes take this up a notch, being historic symbols of protection against ghosts, evil spirits and other creepy phenomena. With Scooby tagging along on all of the Mystery Inc.’s paranormal adventures, and escaping every time unscathed, it’s not hard to draw parallels between America’s favorite cartoon canine and the real-world, evil-warding dog breed.

But Scooby can’t have it all. While epitomizing this ancient symbolism, he also tears it down by being an absolute scaredy cat in almost every episode — certainly not the protector mythology racks him up to be! Considering Great Danes were originally hunting dogs used to track and take down wild boar whilst protecting their noble, 16th century owners, it’s doubtful the fearful Scooby can claim this ultra-prestigious heritage.

Personality Traits

Loyal, yes. Loving, yes. Slobbering, probably. But as far as other Great Dane personality traits go, Scooby fails the stereotypes of his breed, hardly standing in the face of danger but jumping straight into Shaggy’s arms.

Intelligence

Great Danes rank quite averagely when it comes to measuring a dog’s intelligence. But thankfully for Scooby, he can talk (albeit in broken English), walk upright when he chooses, use opposable thumbs, even grab a box of Scooby Snacks and pour it into his mouth! For once, he actually surpasses the Great Dane in his abilities. Super Dane?

Scooby Doo’s Creator Reveals the Dog’s True Breed

Getting to the bottom of Scooby Doo’s true dog breed feels like one step forward, two- steps back. He hits some Great Dane criteria spot on while missing other marks by a mile. To crack the code, we’ll have to dust the cobwebs off Scooby’s origin story and delve into the character’s hidden past.

The Japanese-American animator, Iwao Takamoto, is the man behind the legendary canine. Despite his death in 2007 at the age of 81, Iwao left a breadcrumb trail of clues leading us closer to Scooby Doo’s true identity.

According to his memorium article by the New York Times, Iwao had previously revealed to employees of Cartoon Network how he designed his greatest character, Scooby Doo. Iwao drew back to the 1960s, remembering, “There was a lady that bred Great Danes at Hanna-Barbera [the animation studio that produced Scooby Doo]. She showed me some pictures and talked about the important points of a Great Dane — like a straight back, straight legs, small chin and such. I decided to go the opposite and give him a hump back, bowed legs, big chin and such. Even his color is wrong.”

Finally, the answer reveals itself.

Scooby Doo: A Slightly Deformed Dane

Scooby Doo’s original designer, Iwao Takamoto admitted that Scooby is a skewed version of a Great Dane; a pick ‘n’ mix of the greatest Dane traits swerved with lovable nuances that make this cartoon a stand-out icon.

Iwao took the template for a classic Great Dane and patchworked his own ridiculous sense of humor into its pattern. He gave Scooby some groovy spots, kinked his back and legs to craft the impression of an adorably stupid sidekick rather than an all-out, majestic show stealer, even giving Scooby a bit of a double chin (though this could be traced back to all the Scooby snacks).

Fun fact: Scooby Doo wasn’t the only famous dog Iwao Takamoto had the honor of animating. Iwao also lent his hand to the original animated films, 101 Dalmatians and Lady and the Tramp!

Even amongst other celebrity dogs of his era, such as Snoopy or Deputy Dawg, Scooby’s rare set of quirks is what sets him apart from his canine counterparts. He can’t be pinned down with one, generic list of traits. Just like any dog that makes a mark on TV or in real life, Scooby’s unique personality makes him a memorable, loveable legend; so iconic that his cartoon career has persisted for over 50 years and shows no sign of slowing down yet.

From the original, 1969 series of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!, through the late ‘70s iteration, Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo, the mid-noughties refresh, What’s New, Scooby-Doo and finally to the latest revival, HBO Max’s current series Velma, this Great Dane with a complicated mix-match of traits is still keeping his audiences cackling away like any real Dane would.