GENTLE GIANT WANTS TALLEST TITLE—Raz is ready to be recognized as the Guinness World Record holder for the Tallest Dog Alive, but a slightly bigger dog from San Diego recently beat him out. Still, he’s an enormous dog with a big heart and is certified as a therapy dog. Thousand Oaks resident Gary Clark, Raz’s owner, loves him even if the huge canine hasn’t been officially recognized as the tallest dog. Raz has certainly won his owner’s heart. NANCY NEEDHAM/Acorn Newspapers It cost Gary Clark almost $1,000 to have the Guinness Book of World Records consider his Great Dane as the tallest living dog in the world, but another canine inched him out.

After the previous recordholder, a 42.2-inch tall harlequin Great Dane named Gibson from Grass Valley, Calif., died in August, a white Great Dane named Titan, from San Diego, received the title.

That left Clark’s pet, Raz, feeling kind of small, but owner Clark said he told the 4-year-old pooch, “You need to be happy for the other dog.”

It’s not like Titan is going to live forever.

The current record holder is a hair over 42 inches from floor to shoulder, plus another 8 inches if his head height is added in. He weighs 190 pounds. But Titan’s in poor health—blind, deaf and epileptic—Clark said.

Clark wishes Titan the best, but if anything happens to him, the 185-pound Raz, who’s 38 inches at the withers, 46 inches to the top of his head, and 7½ feet standing on his hind legs, is ready to take the big dog title.

Raz, whose American Kennel Club name is Daneridge Alexander Rasputin Dances with Squirrels, was 8 weeks old when the show dog breeder contacted the Clarks and told them a pet-quality puppy had been found for them. The family had been on a waiting list for a puppy deemed less than show quality. What made Raz unsuitable for the show ring? That’s right. He was too big.

“At 8 weeks he was 25 pounds. The breed standard is 31 to 32 inches tall and 130 pounds,” Clark said.

Raz was huge compared to the other large puppies. Still, the Clarks, who live in Westlake portion of Thousand Oaks, didn’t fully understand how big a dog they had until he was 6 months old and they tried to put him in their Land Cruiser to go on a trip. He didn’t fit.

They had to purchase a Mercedes Sprinter, a large utility-type van, and remove some back seats to make room for the huge dog. He also needed a nice ramp to help him get inside easily.

In the house he sleeps on a pulled-out sofa bed. He also has a big screen TV to watch. He eats three to four times a day: Each meal consists of 1 cup of dry food, half a can of wet food, a chicken breast and 1 cup of rice. He also eats lots and lots of treats. He loves treats and carefully takes them from a friendly hand.

“He’s a gentle, goofy giant,” Clark said.

The black dog with white paws and a white tip on his tail may not be show quality, but he’s a beautiful beast. Unlike his champion father, he won’t be winning a lot of ribbons and trophies, but he doesn’t seem to mind.

His job, as a certified service dog, is to go to hospitals and cheer up ill children.

“He’s a big dog with a big heart,” Clark said.

People approach Raz wherever he goes and want to pet him or have their photos taken with the gigantic animal.

He looks as if he’d be king of the castle, but the family’s 7pound female Abyssinian cat is really the boss, said Clark’s wife, Jill.

“She tells Raz if he can be on the sofa or not. She’s the dominant one,” Jill Clark said.

Just because Raz is big enough to eat the small cat in one bite doesn’t mean he has to prove it. For everyone but that tiny cat, his size and regal demeanor gain him automatic respect.