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bad legs and bowel problems

20 8:59:37

Question
we have a dane who is now about 9 1/2 (he was a rescue aged 3 when we got him).  His back legs are becoming quite bowed and he knuckles his back feet under frequently when walking.  He still wants to go for walks but his breathing becomes very laboured.  It is quite clear his bowels are not great and very, very loose.  We have tried starving for 24 hours and then reinstating a diet of boiled chicken and rice.  We feed him a little Royal Canin in the morning and either the same in the evening or a little boiled rice and chicken but he may go for a few days when he is OK but then suddenly for no reason, he will have a bad stomach again which may last for a few days.  He is petrified of the vets although our vet is very good and will come out to the house but we are at the stage now where we wonder what the best thing to do for him is.  I think the problem is that everytime he gets better, we think it's ok.  He still gets enthusiastic about his walks and again this distorts the picture.  We have had danes before but thankfully they all died peacefully. Have you any advice or suggestions or do you think that the bowels are linked to the neurological spine problem which is progressing?  thank you in advance.

Answer
Karen,

As a Dane starts getting older, it is just like a person. They start loosing function of certain things one by one. Nine and a half is a very ripe age for a Great Dane, especially a rescue. If you start seeing that he is NOT able to get up and begins to loose his bowels on himself, that means it is probably time to say goodbye. As long as he is able to get up and go out to potty, I think you are ok in keeping him with you. You can probably talk to your veterinarian to prescribe you something for pain, as he probably has some onset arthritis going on, which may or may not be causing the bowing in the legs. Make sure that you have him on a good Senior Diet, which has some of the extra added Glutosamine and Condroitin. If you start seeing any obvious signs of pain, that is another sign that it maybe time to help him get to the Rainbow Bridge.

I hope this helps give you some insight and I wish you the very best with your Dane Baby!

Have a wonderful day.