Rocky Mountain Great Dane Rescue, Inc.

Zeus is a very special Great Dane/English Mastiff mix who came into rescue on Friday, February 9th . He came to us from a very nice family in Fountain who rescued Zeus from a bad situation. They had a male mastiff already and wanted a companion for him, so they went to visit and were horrified by the situation they encountered, so they decided they had to bring him home and help him. The lady had about 50 other dogs and Zeus was emaciated and clearly not receiving proper medical care. He was 6 months old at the time. They took him to the vet immediately and he was heartworm positive, had worms, and was completely emaciated. They had him treated and got him on good nutrition and he grew into a handsome gentle giant over the next two years. He had a hard time on wood floors and tile, but seemed to do fine on carpet and didn't do too bad with stairs. They took him for short walks only because otherwise he would get shaky and sore. He ran around the backyard and most of the time acted completely normal and happy, however, they knew that something wasn't right and wanted to get him the care he needed, so they contacted RMGDRI.

We made him a vet appointment with Dr. Winton at VCA Wingate and upon further examination and x-rays, she recommended we take him to a specialist. A couple days later we had him seen by Dr. Taylor at Alameda East. The exam began with a walk outside to inspect his normal gate and he immediately suspected that the problems we were seeing were not hip displaysia, but instead something neurological. We took him back into the exam room and her performed a complete neurological exam to check his neuro responses to various tests. We noticed that Zeus struggles to pick up his feet and drags them sometimes. Another strange response we saw was that when pressure was applied to one foot, his other foot responded by extending. Unfortunately, Dr. Taylor concluded that Zeus is in the very early stages of a neurological disease called Wobbler's.

Wobbler syndrome is essentially caused by a malformation of the vertebrae within the neck. The spinal canal opening is smaller than normal in dogs who have Wobbler's, causing pressure on the spinal cord which prevents neural impulses from passing through the spinal cord like they would normally. Instability between the individual neck vertebrae in addition to the narrowing of the spinal canal in generally noted as the dog matures. While any breed can be affected, over 80 percent of all cases reported are in Great Danes and Doberman Pinschers.

Usually symptoms appear before four years of age, which is why it is not uncommon to see what we are seeing with Zeus who is only 1.5 years old. One of the things Dr. Taylor did was to manipulate his neck which was pretty stiff and is commonly the first sign, followed by weakness and lack of coordination in the rear limbs, progressing to weakness in the front limbs as well.

This condition is very serious and heartbreaking news to us all. Zeus is an incredibly sweet boy with a wonderful temperament and does not deserve the card he has been dealt in life. Rocky Mountain Great Dane Rescue is fully committed to making this gentle giant a permanent member of our foster program and will will treat his condition for as long as we can provide him with quality of life. Treatment typically includes anti-inflammatory medications to provide some relief and eventually some neurological medications. It is important to understand, however, that all we can do is manage the situation and these medications do not correct the abnormal spinal canal within the vertebrae.

For now, Zeus is very happy and not in pain and his foster family will make sure to spoil him with all the love and attention a boy could dream of! The board of directors will continually monitor his condition and progress, as we are doing with Tiny Tatum who is another member of our permanent foster program. If you would like to donate to help RMGDRI provide the necessary care for this sweet boy, you can do so online or mail a check to our PO Box.

March 2, 2007

I am disappointed to report that Zeus' symptoms have actually worsened in the last week since his initial diagnosis at Alameda just one week ago. He has started high stepping and is losing his balance and falling more often.

Zeus had an appointment yesterday with Dr. Jan Facinelli at Holistic Care For Animals in Wheat Ridge yesterday. Amy, Elizabeth, and I were also present for the consultation. Jan educated us about Homeopathic medicine and told us that the goal is to determine how Zeus deals with his disease uniquely and how he shows his symptoms instead of treating the disease itself. She compared it to determining the layers of the onion and the core being his genetic predisposition to the illness. She also cautioned us that it may take 3-5 treatments before we begin to see any effects.

During our visit, Jan asked a lot of questions about Zeus' history, prior homes, treatment, diet, current habits, and existing symptoms. She did a thorough physical exam and made note of a brown discharge in both ears that is apparently a sign of chronic health problems. She also pointed out that he has a very dry, crusty nose and a tender spot on his neck around C6 at the base of his neck.We all watched his high-stepping, or "goose stepping" as she called it, and he lost his balance several times during the exam. His head would shake when he would turn his neck at a certain angle as well.

Jan decided to do a chiropractic adjustment and used an electric activator along his vertebrae. She also suggested that we switch to a gentle leader harness to avoid having anything around his face or neck due to his stiffness.

Since Zeus' symptoms have gotten worse instead of better on the Prednisone, we are going to slowly wean him off of the steroids. Jan has prescribed a combination of onosmodium, phosphorus, ignacius, silica, and a few other remedies to address each of his symptoms. For example, the onosmodium is for lifting his legs and the silica is for weakness and inability to hold his neck up and also good for his ears. His foster mom has been instructed to give 1/2 cc twice a day, diluted in water in addition to Amino B-Plex which is good for neurological issues. We are going to closely monitor any changes and will speak to Jan by phone on Monday.

We are also going to talk to Dr. Taylor at Alameda about switching to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory since the Prednisone is not working.

Zeus is still as sweet as ever. Everyone who meets him falls in love! Jan and the rest of her associates at the Holistic Vet were all amazed at what a wonderful temperament he has and are anxious to do everything they can to help him be as comfortable for as long as possible! We will keep you posted.

March 7, 2007

Every time Zeus sees someone he knows, he tries to raise a paw to shake with them. However, he can never seem to get his paw more than 6 inches off the ground. After a few days of being on the natural remedies prescribed by the Holistic vet, his foster mom came home from work one night and he leaned onto his back legs and promptly put both of his front paws up into the air so high she could hold them in my hands. It was an incredible step for him in mobility and he did not seem to be nearly as stiff or painful! He definitely does not seem to do as well on the days when he is on the steriods for some reason. They really aren't helping at all, so we are anxious to wean him off the prednisone completely.

March 11, 2007

Zeus went to his forever home with Frances & Tom in Lander. He has a Dane mix brother named Opie, a Dane brother named Bob, and a Dane sister named Chloe. All three siblings were rescued and Bob and Chloe were adopted from RMGDRI. His new parents are retired and live in the country. They have lots of land for the dogs to run and play on and are home almost all the time, so he will rarely have to be left alone. His new family has a wonderful vet who will make sure he is as comfortable as possible for whatever time he has left! We are incredibly grateful to Frances & Tom for opening their hearts and home to a Dane with Wobbler's.

March 12, 2007

Zeus made instant friends with the rest of the gang after his arrival home! He has thoroughly enjoyed walking in the sun with his new friends today. Tom and Frances think he is the sweetest thing on earth and are incredibly happy to have him. They spoke to Dr. Jan at the Holistic vet today and intend on continuing to follow her advice since the remedies appear to be working so far.

March 21, 2007

Here is an update from Zeus' new family:

We have changed his name to Bruce and he doesn't seem to notice. He is happy, he plays with his siblings, he is eating really well, and we love him. Everyone's getting along fine. He even has Chloe playing tug-a-war with toys. She doen't win but she plays. He loves to go out and investigate his new surroundings. I don't think he knows what to think about the goats and donkies on the other side of the fence.

Tom & Frances