Schleich 2023 Great Dane 13962

I went dog figure hunting yesterday and I was surprised in the best possible way to find that our local Schleich shop had lots of the 2023 models in stock! I am happy to say that most of them look just as good if not better in real life, I didn't look that closely but I think Schleich have released some beautiful models this year which is a good thing! And it was an absolute highlight of the day to see this dog on the shelves (The Bichon Frise hadn't arrived yet) and I immediately bought it, a little early Christmas present!    And so even though we are not in 2023 yet, I present to you the Schleich 2023 Great Dane!

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I will let the photos speak for themselves but this is certainly a very interesting choice from Schleich!   They have already released three Great Danes previously, one in the 1:12 scale and the other an adult and pup as part of their smaller series from 2010, although all retired so I guess they were in need of this iconic breed for their current range! Nicknamed the 'Apollo of Dogs' after the Greek god it is a truly impressive breed with its elegance, dignity and tall stature. The modern breed was developed in the 18th century in Germany although some argue that it is much older and this is evidenced in art from ancient Egypt and Greece.  They were originally bred to hunt bear and wild boar and were developed through crossing mastiffs with Irish wolfhounds and greyhounds to create a tall, agile, fast dog for this purpose! The tallest dog ever in history was a Great Dane, Zeus, who measured 1.12m at the shoulder- it is certainly an impressive breed with an impressive history!  

More photos!

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Made in Vietnam
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Sweet serious face
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With a Lego brick to show size!
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And now for some comparison photos! The thing that struck me most about this model when I first saw it on the shelf was just how small it was, I was expecting a much larger dog considering it is the tallest breed in the world It looks almost looks like a Great Dane puppy next to the Safari, Papo and CollectA giants- although it's just taller than Schleich's smaller Dane, but appears smaller as it's quite a delicate, slim model. Although far from being to scale with Schleich's newest dogs (The Jack Russell almost reaches its shoulder ) it still scales fairly nicely with them and is thankfully still the tallest of them all I believe, so very obviously a Dane!

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I had to do a comparison with Safari's latest model too because when I first saw Schleich's official photo of their Dane the first thing I thought of was Safari's- I wonder whether Schleich were inspired by them, as both models seem very similar other than size of course!   Two gorgeous Danes   :

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And one with Schleich's previous Dane to this one, both of a similar size! It is quite clear to see the change in style from the last 10 years (The previous Schleich was released 2010), the newer model is much more simplistic, proportions aren't as accurate and it just lacks a lot of the detail of the previous figure- but both are lovely interpretations of the breed and I think this difference is quite an interesting view of the direction Schleich is going in!  

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On to my views of the model! We'll start with the positives because I love to see the positives in all models, I am only too pleased that Schleich chose to expand their range of dogs next year and any new dog model is a joy for me! I was surprised and super pleased that unusually for Schleich the model doesn't seem to be exaggerated in any way in terms of cuteness! That really wouldn't have worked for this breed And an interesting colour choice, generally children find brighter colours more appealing and so I'm glad this hasn't affected the model in any way. I think there are some nice details, including the fold of skin around the neck/ dewlaps and with the fur and it certainly captures the serious dignity of this breed with that facial expression . It is a lovely little model of this dog, with no major faults, not a masterpiece but equally a nice representation of a Dane as it is instantly obvious that it is a model of this breed!

However I did think that it was a little too small/ bland/ simplistic to really capture the majestic, impressive nature of the Great Dane, possibly to save on material costs but it does slightly lack muscle definition and was much shorter/ more narrow than I expected! The material is also much bendier than the earlier smaller dogs that first appeared in 2010 although this isn't necessarily a negative. I think I said similar in my review of the goldendoodle but there is certainly just more of a sense of Schleich's move to even greater mass production   It also seems quite simplistic, not a lot of detail and attention to the subtle individual characteristics of the breed- but I'd much rather this than a model that is overly cute/ cartoony so this is certainly a positive from Schleich!

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Interested to hear what everyone thinks about this model! All in all I think it's a great little Dane (Little is probably the wrong word for this breed but it seems to fit for this particular figure ) I love that serious, calm loving expression it has that lots of Danes seem to have Whether or not they have truly created an impressive 'Apollo of Dogs' is debatable but there is no doubt that this is a lovely model of this breed for anyone looking for a smaller Dane and I'm sure that many will find the accurate simplicity quite appealing- it captures the essence of the breed despite lacking detail which I'm sure makes it a very worthy candidate for any collector who is an enthusiast of the breed or would just love a figure of a Great Dane on their shelf!

So nice to see a 2023 dog figure being presented in 2022 and by our Dog collector expert!
I miss a lot that feeling of wanting to find something new in a local shop, Schleich isn't as agressive as before since the representative for Portugal is a Spanish dealer now and Papo always restock slowly. Other brands got frozen here.
These comparisons are so useful and I'm so glad you included the Safari model since it is my main target to represent this breed in my little collection.
I basically agree about almost everything and I suspect you're right and the Safari model was probably on the worktable during the time the sculptor of the Schleich model was working on it. I know other brands also use Schleich models to find inspiration and it is not wrong as long as the final product is not a copy and this one is not for sure.
Schleich is a new brand as I've been saying for a few years. We were used for more than a decade to a brand with a very consistent design, some new generations of models were clearly similar to the previous ones and it was relatively easy to identify a Schleich figure. It has many positive points if the average quality is good. Schleich gained identity, figures were compatible and it generated a sense of collection. Even similar figures of other brands seemed out of the collection. The negative point is that it limited the diversity and the brand was quite predictable.
Now we have more diversity in all regards and less consistency in terms of quality.
This is what this Great Dane looks to me, a good figure from a new but inexperient brand and not a good figure from a consolidated brand as it happened with the previous models.
It is a serious representation, very identifiable but simplistic as you said. I like the fact it is not chubby, it could mischaracterize the breed and i think the style might work nicely with the Afghan hound they've released.
Though, as a whole, I don't find it comparable to the Safari model which bears the dignity of a resin product, at least in terms of sculpt. The differences in size are quite dramatic, I'm not sure Safari could do it at a much smaller scale. Schleich's is a really good model but not a masterpiece as you pointed.

Bonnie,great to see that the 2023 releases are available in your area so hopefully will be in mine soon!!The Great Dane looks like a great model but like you surprised at how small it is.The colour looks nice as well,so all we need in the colour range is a nice tiger brindle and a mantle to be made by a mainstream company-Breyer excluded!

Nice photos of this very nice dog! I still like the older Great dane better but the new one has a charm too!

Thank you very much for this lovely walkaround dear Bonnie

Nice one.

But i don't like this breed. They have a lifespan less than guinea pigs.

I used one of these pictures to illustrate this model on TAW and I added a link to this topic.
Now I'm looking forward to see the Bichon Frisé.

Thankyou very much for the walkaround and the informative comparisons, dear Lilias

I got this model earlier this week, and was sad that it was about the size of one from a Safari toob.
The head makes me think of a Giant Schnauzer:lol:

All in all I am not too impressed, but your deep love of dogs shines through, and in your pictures it is not so bad

Thank you for this beautiful walkaround Bonnie!

Roger wrote:

So nice to see a 2023 dog figure being presented in 2022 and by our Dog collector expert!
I miss a lot that feeling of wanting to find something new in a local shop, Schleich isn't as agressive as before since the representative for Portugal is a Spanish dealer now and Papo always restock slowly. Other brands got frozen here.
These comparisons are so useful and I'm so glad you included the Safari model since it is my main target to represent this breed in my little collection.
I basically agree about almost everything and I suspect you're right and the Safari model was probably on the worktable during the time the sculptor of the Schleich model was working on it. I know other brands also use Schleich models to find inspiration and it is not wrong as long as the final product is not a copy and this one is not for sure.
Schleich is a new brand as I've been saying for a few years. We were used for more than a decade to a brand with a very consistent design, some new generations of models were clearly similar to the previous ones and it was relatively easy to identify a Schleich figure. It has many positive points if the average quality is good. Schleich gained identity, figures were compatible and it generated a sense of collection. Even similar figures of other brands seemed out of the collection. The negative point is that it limited the diversity and the brand was quite predictable.
Now we have more diversity in all regards and less consistency in terms of quality.
This is what this Great Dane looks to me, a good figure from a new but inexperient brand and not a good figure from a consolidated brand as it happened with the previous models.
It is a serious representation, very identifiable but simplistic as you said. I like the fact it is not chubby, it could mischaracterize the breed and i think the style might work nicely with the Afghan hound they've released.
Though, as a whole, I don't find it comparable to the Safari model which bears the dignity of a resin product, at least in terms of sculpt. The differences in size are quite dramatic, I'm not sure Safari could do it at a much smaller scale. Schleich's is a really good model but not a masterpiece as you pointed.

I'm so glad you like this little dog walkaround! I agree with you, it's so nice to be able to walk into a shop and see the model in real life before buying them, something that online shopping can't really provide- I really hope that more local shops to you start to restock with the major brands! That's very interesting about other brands using Schleich models for inspiration too And I loved reading your thoughts on the Dane and would completely agree!

Taos wrote:

Bonnie,great to see that the 2023 releases are available in your area so hopefully will be in mine soon!!The Great Dane looks like a great model but like you surprised at how small it is.The colour looks nice as well,so all we need in the colour range is a nice tiger brindle and a mantle to be made by a mainstream company-Breyer excluded!

Thank you, I hope they will be in your local shops too soon! Definitely, it's a great colour despite the size and it really would be wonderful to see some brindle as you mentioned!

widukind wrote:

Thanks Andreas!

Shanti wrote:

Nice photos of this very nice dog! I still like the older Great dane better but the new one has a charm too!

It certainly does have a charm! But yes I'd agree and I still think it doesn't really compare to their previous Danes, but definitely a positive that they haven't made it overly cute and it is still recognisable as the breed!

costicuba wrote:

Thank you very much for this lovely walkaround dear Bonnie

Thank you so much Kosta, I'm so glad you like the walkaround!

Tupolew Tu-154 wrote:

Nice one.

But i don't like this breed. They have a lifespan less than guinea pigs.

It really is a shame As with lots of pedigree dogs their health has suffered as a consequence, I guess because of their extreme size.

Roger wrote:

I used one of these pictures to illustrate this model on TAW and I added a link to this topic.
Now I'm looking forward to see the Bichon Frisé.

I'm glad this topic could be useful! And yes I do need to make a polar bear walkaround soon

SUSANNE wrote:

Thankyou very much for the walkaround and the informative comparisons, dear Lilias

I got this model earlier this week, and was sad that it was about the size of one from a Safari toob.
The head makes me think of a Giant Schnauzer:lol:

All in all I am not too impressed, but your deep love of dogs shines through, and in your pictures it is not so bad

Thank you so much Susanne, your words are always so kind! I agree with you, it is a shame about the size. And I see what you mean about the head. So lovely to hear from you again too  

Caracal wrote:

Thank you for this beautiful walkaround Bonnie!

Thank you Alain, I'm so glad you liked it!

Nice to see you here again :)

widukind wrote:

Nice to see you here again :)

Thank you Andreas! It's great to have a bit more spare time now to visit STS

Thank you Lilias   Another excellent topic that I missed last year.  

So what does a macaque who doesn't collect figurines of pets and therefore of dogs and lives with four cats think about it?

First of all, I like your kindness, the way you give the model a chance, the way you show us the positive aspects, it's very comforting.  

Then if one day I had to add a figurine to my collection of dogs, I have two in my displays, the Kitan Shiba Inu and the Papo Fox terrier, you have just convinced me to aim for a Great Dane... The Safari ltd

Interesting, not long after my post I found 2023 Schleich models locally. It seems stores are restocking with the new distributor. I did not buy the Bichon Frisé but that's a question of time and I get one. The Great Dane is low in my ranking, I acquired the previous Schleich recently but I might trade it because I really want the Safari, the Papo or even the Chap Mei which seems to be a very beautiful representative of the breed and a good sized one too.

Kikimalou wrote:

Thank you Lilias   Another excellent topic that I missed last year.  

So what does a macaque who doesn't collect figurines of pets and therefore of dogs and lives with four cats think about it?

First of all, I like your kindness, the way you give the model a chance, the way you show us the positive aspects, it's very comforting.  

Then if one day I had to add a figurine to my collection of dogs, I have two in my displays, the Kitan Shiba Inu and the Papo Fox terrier, you have just convinced me to aim for a Great Dane... The Safari ltd

Thank you so much Christophe, and for such kind words about my little walkaround! I am so glad this topic has convinced you about the Safari Great Dane, it really is a beautiful model even for collectors who don't collect dogs! I'm sure he would love to join your back alongside the Kitn Shiba Inu and Papo fox terrier!

Roger wrote:

Interesting, not long after my post I found 2023 Schleich models locally. It seems stores are restocking with the new distributor. I did not buy the Bichon Frisé but that's a question of time and I get one. The Great Dane is low in my ranking, I acquired the previous Schleich recently but I might trade it because I really want the Safari, the Papo or even the Chap Mei which seems to be a very beautiful representative of the breed and a good sized one too.

So glad to hear the 2023 Schleich came to your area! All those Great Danes you listed are wonderful and I'm sure you'd be happy with any of them- maybe get all three!