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Kevin, who is 3ft 2in tall, was scared of kittens and even freaked out over the tape measure used to measure his height.
“He’s always been an anxious, nervous dog,” said Wolf, who lives on a farm in Maxburg, Iowa, with her husband, two children, four dogs, three cats and several other animals.
Kevin is the Wolf’s second Great Dane – their first, Cora, passed away at age 6 in 2019. Great Danes generally have a short lifespan (about 7-10 years), but Wolf loves their gentle, giant personalities.
“They don’t know how big they are,” said Wolf, who runs two veterinary clinics in Des Moines. “They’re just so sweet.”
So when she came across a Facebook post about a Great Dane puppy being born in 2019, she and her husband decided to meet the puppies — and ended up bringing Kevin home.
“He was very friendly and came running up to us,” Wolf said, adding that he named him after Kevin McCallister, the main character in the “Home Alone” movies.
As a puppy, Kevin showed no signs of becoming a giant Great Dane, but by the time he was a year old, it was clear that he would grow to be quite tall. (The average male Great Dane is about 2 feet 6 inches.) Kevin is thin for his height and weighs about 150 pounds.
“Kevin just kept getting better and better,” Wolf said.
Her son, 12-year-old Alexander, has an especially close bond with Kevin.
“Alexander is Kevin’s owner,” Wolf said, adding that it was her son’s idea to apply for the Guinness World Records title for the world’s tallest dog. On May 20, Alexander was recognized as the new record holder.
The previous record holder, Zeus, also a Great Dane, stood 3 feet 5.18 inches tall and weighed about 200 pounds. Like Kevin, Zeus hated thunderstorms. He passed away in 2022 at age 3 after a battle with osteosarcoma. A Great Dane also named Zeus holds the record for the tallest dog of all time, standing 3 feet 6 inches tall.
Wolff said the whole family was overjoyed when Kevin won the title.
“We were all very excited,” Wolf said.
Alexander loves telling people about his dog breaking a world record.
“He was like, ‘Kevin deserves this!'” Wolf said.
In their tiny hometown of about 100 people, Kevin has become a local celebrity. Wherever they take him, people are amazed at his size and say he’s the tallest dog they’ve ever seen. Now, the family is convinced that’s probably true.
“We joke that more people know Kevin than we do,” Wolf says. “Everybody loves Kevin.”
Wolf said Kevin likes everyone, but especially kids, “because he can see their faces right in front of him.”
In fact, Kevin is better at getting along with people than he is with dogs.
“He sometimes has a hard time finding his friends because he’s scared of them,” Wolf said. “When Kevin wants to play, he sulks.”
His canine siblings, which include a pug, terrier and mastiff, have all grown accustomed to Kevin’s towering physique and spend their days running around the family farm together.
“He’s so long, it’s amazing to watch,” Wolf said. “He’s playful, he’s loving, he’s a really funny character. He’s got such a unique personality.”
The Wolfs have two horses and a miniature pony that make Kevin look like a dwarf, and although they’ve never measured Kevin by his hind legs, Kevin is significantly taller than Wolf’s husband, Roger, who is about 6 feet tall.
Wolf said Kevin rarely sits, preferring to stand or lie down, but he does like to be cuddled and has a tendency to sit on people’s laps.
Kevin seems completely unaware of his own size and often tries to squeeze into tight spaces or into a small bed. He frequently “zoomies” and runs around the house, causing mayhem. When he bumps into furniture, he ends up moving it.
Kevin is generally well behaved, but he does have a mean side, especially when it comes to food. He has a sweet tooth and has stolen cookies, pies, and other baked goods from the kitchen counters, which are at eye level for him. He recently stole an entire pizza.
“He’s really crafty,” Wolf said.
But what sets him apart is kindness: his heart is as big as his body.
“He’s just a great kid,” Wolf said.
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