Sorry Barb, I was traveling and couldn't check in til now.
My dane pups weren't that hard to handle, it is a size thing. The pup is bigger, the damage is bigger, and the rambunctiousne
ss is rougher. They don't realize their own size and strength, so they can inadvertantly knock a small person down while zooming thru the house at full speed. There is no malicious intent, just pure puppy exhuberence in a 100+ pound package. Plus they are so darned cute...
Unless you catch it right away, they counter surf and nothing is out of reach. Those tails can clear a coffee table in one happy sweep, and have been known to drop strong men into quivering balls of genitile pain.
Once they get thru the bursting with energy, clumsy phase they are absolute charmers.
I can't compare them with a lab pup because I have never had one, but compared to a dobie, they are similar. The only difference is that my danes had bursts of energy, then would crash for a coupe of hours, then start all over again. My dobies were non-stop go til they crashed for the night.
Hope this has helped
Stella