Nine-month-old Euphrates was bred to resemble a giant prehistoric monster dog.
She eats 8 cups of a dog food a day and prefers to play with a fence post rather than a squeaky toy.
Owner Jared Howser, 41, of Salt Lake City, Utah, said: “It’s unreal and unheard of, at 9 months, her size and strength is far beyond what I thought it would be.
“When she stands on her hind legs she is 6 feet tall, that’s only at 9 months too, on all fours to the withers, the tops of her shoulders she is 31.5 inches.
“If she was to stand she is big enough to look out of the peephole on our door.
“I’m 260 pounds and 6-foot-3-inches tall, but if she decided to run I couldn’t hold her on the leash, she could drag me down the road with ease”.
Euphrates is a new breed called the American Molossus – the closest genetic descendant of the Mesopotamian Molossus, last seen around 5,000 B.C.
The extinct canines were used in war and the only remnants of their legend is left in museums.
Howser added: “Just from wagging her tail, if she catches your knees she can take down a grown man down no problem. We have a pitbull who she plays tug of war with, they are known for their ability to pull more than their own weight, but Euphrates she just sits holding the other end in her mouth unaffected and not budging at all. When people look at her, they are surprised and ask how I’ve been able to keep her under control, joking that I must be a lion tamer. Most people think she is a fully grown dog when we take her out in public, when we tell them she is a 9-month-old puppy their jaws hit the floor.”
Euphrates cost $5,000 and was the largest of the litter.
Howser said: “She had two growth spurts and, in that time period, she was so clumsy because she was getting vastly bigger every day.
“I never expected that she would be this big when we first brought her home, at 4 and a half months old she was already 136 pounds.
“By 6 months old she was tall enough to reach the kitchen counter while sitting down.”
- nypost.com