ZuZu the Great Dane acts younger at age 8 than she did at age 5
ZuZu is an 8 year old Great Dane with chronic arthritis and tight muscles over her whole body. ZuZu is Izzi’s housemate. You met Izzi in this blog entry. ZuZu had been diagnosed with arthritis at age 5 and was on pain medication. The medication had helped a bit in the beginning but her lameness was always present. She loved chasing the chuck-it ball, but her limping got worse after she had been out having fun.
Her owners thought maybe ZuZu’s best years were behind her as she seemed like a geriatric dog at age 5.
When I first treated ZuZu she had saliva stained front feet from chronic anxiety-related licking, joint and muscle pain, and she was overweight. Her lameness began to improve after several treatments. She was started on an herbal anti-anxiety supplement called Harmonease that stopped her licking. Now her feet are perfectly clean and white.
Acupuncture and chiropractic helped improve her joint mobility and reduce her pain. Another major factor in her improved health was weight loss. ZuZu can now run and play without limping and she is as sleek and trim as a cover girl model.
ZuZu is an emotional dog. She can easily become on edge and upset. But since her pain has been controlled her quality of life has allowed her to have a lot more fun. If there was an Oprah show for dogs, ZuZu would like to parade on stage to tell her story of weight gain, depression, and then her path back to health as she lost weight and started to feel fabulous!
