Rex is gone

October 18th 2011.  I made the incredible difficult decision to send my dear Rex to his next life. He was no longer able to walk by himself. His difficult childhood finally caught up with him.

He was given a few more years to live at the age of 4 when I adopted him. Rex fought back and gave me 9 great years.

Rex's battle with a poisonous spider bite - July-19-2011

June 19
It's now apparent that the wound his getting smaller. In all the years I have had dogs I have never experienced anything like this. It blows my mind that a tiny little spider can cause so much damage. I also have a black Great Dane and there is no way I could discover any colorization on him and catch this in an early stage, quite frightening.

Major changes!

New life....
A business opportunity presented itself for me a few months ago and I'm going with it. In order to be able to make this move I had to rent a house. This means my travel plans is on hold for at least a year. This is also good for my buddy Rex. He had a hard time getting in and out of the RV. Now we have no steep stairs to deal with.
Rex's condition is about the same. He has good and not so good days but we take each day as it comes. He still seems more or less pain free, just stiff and slow. That's OK I have the patience to take care of him. I just want to give him a good life to the end whenever that is. This guy is not ready yet, that I know. Rex is still on one Remidyl a day plus 300mg of Cosequin DS.

Rex keeps surprising me

Rex is showing some encouraging improvements, less limping and dragging. He can also walk 3-4 times longer than he was able to last week. I have also lower his weight with 3 lbs.

Rex hanging in there

I have not posted in a few days. I've been super busy with a web design project. In this economy I have to take what I can and sometimes that's a little more than I can fit into a day's work.

Yesterday Rex looked better than he has in a long time. I have plowed a large circle in an open area where I walk him. It's a lot of snow here now and he can't walk through the deep snow. This circle is also a good measurement for how far he can walk. For the last week he could walk this circle one time before his limping became too severe. Yesterday he made this circle twice and still he was not limping as badly as he normally would have done after one lap. That's my boy!

Rex is still on:
Rimadyl 200mg a day
Cosequin DS 4 tablets a day
Acupuncture once a week

What's working or not is hard to tell. I think the combination of the above is all beneficial to him.

Rex not improving

Resting after 2nd acupuncture session

This is so frustrating. We can't seem to get Rex's leg to improve. He has now been on Rimadyl for one week and completed two acupuncture sessions. It pains me to see him limping so severely and not being able to walk for more than a few minutes. In all other areas he is perfect. Very alert, energetic and have so much willpower to keep going. I'm torn between keep trying and to put him down. I don't see any pain and the vet and the acupuncturist agrees. This is the only reason I keep going. The moment pain enters the picture I know what to do. I will try two more sessions and if that does not show any improvements I will have to make a decision.

More energy, still limping badly

Rex seem more alert, and energetic this morning. He walked out of the RV with more determination that he has had for the last few weeks. He also wanted to walk faster this morning despite his limping. It does not seem to bother him much. It's looks awful to me, but if he can handle it I guess I have to go with it. When he was sick with a kidney infection last year he did not want to get up from the couch and go out. He's nothing like that at this time.

First acupuncture session

Today we went for Rex's first acupuncture session. He did very well. He had a few moments when he got a bit restless and started panting a little, but overall  he was a good patient. The Dr. said we can't expect too much during these first sessions. Rex may even appear to be worse due to the treatment. She also tested Rex for pain and discomfort and agreed with me that he does not seem to be in much pain. I'm very curious to see if this will help. I'll keep my mind open to this.
He is now resting peacefully on the couch after having his meal. I could tell he was relaxed  and a bit weak since he could not  finish his meal standing up. He was so cute, right in the middle of his meal he stumbled over to the couch looked at me to indicate he wanted me to help him up. He finished his meal laying down.

Morning snack

A sure way to get both of my dogs up in the morning is to serve them their morning snack. The reason they get this tiny meal is so I can portion their supplements out better . They get several that are suppose to be taken two times a day.
They both get a multivitamin called daily blend (powder), green blend (powder) and Omega 3. I mix the powder into raw ground meat. Camelot also get half a chicken wing to keep his poop hard. Camelot came to me with chronic diarrhea. This half chicken wing taken with his morning snack and 3 whole chicken wings with his main meal keeps his poop nice and firm and his anal glands empty.

Rex get a variety of  supplements for his joint issues. I'm currently testing Cosequin DS extra strength.

Waking up on a cold morning

Both my dogs know when there is a cold windy storm outside, somehow they feel it and just want to sleep in. Rex always digs is nose under a pillow or blanked. When he is comfortable he makes purring noises.

Camelot likes part of his body covered under a blanket in the winter. He shares the king size bed with me at night these days so Rex can have the space he needs. He gets up and changes position a few times during the night.

I normally would not have a dog in my bed, but Rex sort of takes priority these days. I don't mind since Camelot is very quiet and hardly moves all night.

Happy birthday my friend! Rex is 12 today.

For the last 8 years Rex has been living and traveling with me and my other Danes. I got him at the age of 4. Rex is a genuine kind dog, incredible balanced and even tempered. I can't remember him ever doing anything wrong. He's just hanging out following me quietly. Such a great dog. 

He is now in is last phase of his long life, struggling with pretty serious join issues. I'm taking it day by day with him now. Watching for pain and signs of discomfort beyond what is good for him. I just do not want him to end his life miserable. So far so good. But, I'm prepared and I do live everyday with him as it could be the last. So, happy birthday buddy, I'm pretty sure we got many more walks together.

Rex on new supplements

I have for the longest time used a certain natural supplement for Rex's joint problems. My supplier is out and I'm out too, so I have to find something else meanwhile. My vet really swears by Cosequin, so I bought some last week and Started Rex on it this Friday. I'm actually seeing a difference after already. He is lifting his dragging leg more and not limping as much.  I'll will record him walking to day if I can get him out in this freeze.

Rex made his first noise today.

Today Rex let me know that his leg hurts him a little. I can best describe the noise as something between a grunt and a yelp, very short less than a second, not laud. He makes it when he exits the door going down a few steps and when he walks down a  ramp I use for him when he exits the truck.  It's seems to be his right rear food dragging and bending backwards that causes this. I have to help him out, which I've done for months, but this is new.

Rex has a rather low threshold for pain, something I have learned over the years. but pain is pain and that's my number one concern. I will never let him live a life in pain. It's a bit frustrating since everything else is functioning very well with Rex. He's alert, has great eye sight and hearing. All organs are in good shape. I'm changing his joint supplements to see if that make a difference.

Rex still walked the entire trail this morning and the afternoon.

Long time no post

It's been a long time since my last post. I had to put everything on hold in order to secure my finances. The bad economy hit me real hard. But, I'm not complaining, many got hit worse than I did.

I still have a roof over my head (my RV) and my two Great Danes. Rex is still holding up pretty good. He has good days and not so good days. But, that is expected considering his high age. He is approaching 12 now.

Camelot my young Dane has become a total sweetheart. He has such a great attitude towards everyone, dogs and humans. I think he will become my oldest Dane.

I'm thinking of getting more involved in informing people about big dogs and their expected life span. I truly believe big dogs can live much longer than many do today.  The key is the food. Commercial dog food is the main problem dogs face. Large dogs need more nutrients, much more than found in so called "dog food" sold in stores. I hope to educate dog owners about the right food to feed their dogs. The right food is the type of food a dog's digestive system is designed for.

Rex's age of almost 12 is considered high for a large breed like Great Danes. I will monitor Rex very carefully and document everything I give him on a daily basis and share is here.  His diet is very simple and easy to implement. I consist of raw natural food including bones plus supplements. I have tested a lot of supplements over the last 4-5 years and narrowed it down to a few that seem very helpful to Rex and his old age.

Resting like a Dane on the couch

I got Rex when he was 4 and already at that time he showed signs of joint problems. This is definitely his biggest challenge. His hips and rear legs are weak and uncoordinated. He often falls backward and have a hard time getting up and sometimes he can't. He also trips himself and falls down that way.
When I walk him I have to make sure I know where he is at all times. He loves being off leash and explore the terrain by himself. It's bushy here and he can easily get lost if he falls down. In the evening I use a collar that is lit bright red to prevent him from getting lost.