Zeus - #BigHeartBigGuy
Zeus: A Big Heart With a Special Heart 💛
Some dogs teach you what matters most. Zeus is one of them.
Zeus is a 2-year-old, 84-pound Bernese Mountain Dog who came into our care in mid-August from a farm in Colorado. He’s now living in a foster home in Montrose, CO, and by all accounts, he’s a sweetheart. He’s smart, catches on quickly, and comes when called. He’s working on sit, stay, and heel, and he’s gentle with his foster family’s resident dog and even their cat, who thinks she’s a dog herself.
What We’ve Learned About His Heart
When Zeus arrived, his vet heard a heart murmur. Over the next few weeks he was treated for parasites, an ear issue, and a mouth infection, and his bloodwork came back clean. Then a veterinary cardiologist performed an echocardiogram.
The results showed severe subaortic stenosis (SAS), a congenital condition where tissue below the aortic valve narrows the path blood takes out of the heart. It makes the heart work much harder than it should, and in severe cases it can lead to dangerous heart rhythms.
We won’t sugarcoat it: the prognosis is guarded. Severe SAS can shorten a dog’s life, and there is a risk of sudden death. But every dog is different, and Zeus could be an outlier who has several more good years. His vets have started him on heart medication to help protect him, and his foster is keeping a close eye on his resting breathing, energy, and any signs that his condition is changing.
Welcome to Our Hospice Program
Zeus’s foster has agreed to keep him as part of our Hospice Program, so he’ll stay right where he is. Zeus is comfortable and loved, and he’ll be surrounded by people who adore him, however much time he has. His foster is also exploring supportive care options with a vet who specializes in holistic approaches.
His days look simple: gentle walks, a lot of snuggles, and a foster who sits and holds him through thunderstorms, which he doesn’t love.
How You Can Help
Zeus’s care means medication, follow-up echocardiograms every few months, and ongoing vet visits. Your donation helps us give him every comfort and every chance.
