Deaf, Visually Impaired
Aspen has taught me more about challenges and overcoming them than any one person could ever try.

A deaf and visually impaired puppy, abandoned in a Washington, DC park at the age of 5 months. She came to me with severe separation anxiety.

Aspen loves everyone and anything. A quiet, gentle soul who will be 10 years old in October. Everyone remembers Aspen after meeting her. She has that affect on people and dogs. Dogs who would normally be overly excited around other dogs, are calmed in her presence.

Aspen has learned over 30 hand signals. She's been a Dane Ambassador, attending events for the Mid-Atlantic Great Dane Rescue League, Inc., since puppyhood. She also visits Assisted Living facilities to brighten the days of their residents.

Aspen has faced medical issues along the way. The most serious, canine epilepsy.
Her monthly 20 to 30 cluster seizures, left all vets at a loss to treat her...until one. A wonderful holistic vet has changed the course of Aspen's life.

My special girl has taught me about deafness, vision impairment, separation anxiety, epilepsy, hypothyroidism, a natural diet, and holistic treatments. She has taught me that the body has an incredible way of healing itself if we only give it the chance.

I am forever grateful to Aspen for showing me that any obstacle placed in our way, is an opportunity for change and growth.

Jody Cohen

Barney's first meeting with his sister Olivia
and another merle

Wobbler's Syndrome
My name is Barney and this is my story to the best of my recollection. This is actually my third name and I'm planning to keep it. You see, this is the name given to me by my current and final family.

I started out in a home where they didn't understand me. They took me out on a leash to potty and sometimes I couldn't go just then and later I had accidents in the house.

I wanted them to know I needed to be out more and have a yard to run in but they didn't understand. They put me in a metal box and I stayed there most of the time. It was hard and my body hurt, but mostly I was lonely.

Then, one day this woman came to the house to check me out. She was a "rescue volunteer" and, I was to be moved to another home. I was scared. I didn't like the metal box but it was all I knew.

The next day the woman came back and took me in her car. We drove very far and I was even more scared. She was nice to me and told me I was a good boy. I never heard those words before but they were happy words and I liked it.

I then went to what they call a foster home. My foster Mom was really great. She fed me a lot of food and hugged me a lot. She told me I was good. too... Must be true.

A few weeks later I heard her talk to the woman that picked me up and said that I was falling down and they felt I had Wobbler's Syndrome. Don't know what that is but I quess you fall down a lot.

I think the other name for Wobbler's Syndrome is expensive because I heard that word a lot.

A few days later we had a visitor. It was the woman who brought me to my foster home. She had her dog Olivia and she wanted to see if we got along. Rumor was she might adopt me. I tried to be nice to Olivia and I leaned on the woman a lot. They said I have cute eyes and I used them a lot that day. I didn't know that I had already won her over two months before on the long car ride.

Anyway, I'm home. I have lots to eat and two big comfy beds. I get hugs all the time and sometimes I fall down but someone helps me up. The people here are still telling me that I am a good boy. I knew that all along.

Hypothyroidism, recurring urinary tract infections

It wasn't love at first sight that brought Lexi into our lives. It was the encouragement of the MAGDRL volunteers who described Lexi as that one of a kind good temperament dog you get once in a lifetime.

We needed a Great Dane that walked on water, so to speak. Our current male Great Dane, Obi needed to be crated, we had a dog-friendly cat, and we knew we wanted children in the future. Our family drove three hours to the Maryland border to take a look at a female Great Dane that was returning to MAGDRL after one year of adoption.

Lexi and Obi didn't exactly hit it off and I wasn't sure about taking her because of her health issues with hypothyroidism. My husband convinced me that she would be fine so we packed her up in the SUV and drove home. Lexi's hypothyroidism was under control and it didn't cost much to keep her on her meds. We used a pill organizer to make sure she was getting the dosage she needed.

We shortly discovered her other problem after adoption which was peeing while laying down and not realizing it. Clearly, we were dealing with a medical issue and not a behavioral issue. The vet suspected that her condition was rare because most of the meds used for incontinence weren't working. I drove her to a specialist in Langhorne, PA who told me it would cost $2000 to scope her. I burst into tears and said that I was considering on returning her because this was more than I bargained for. He had a fondness for Great Danes and said that he would only charge me $1,500 because he wanted Lexi to stay with us and not bounced a third time.

We discovered that Lexi's ureters were located on the wrong side of her bladder and she had weak bladder walls. The specialist prescribed Lexi with Phenylpropanolamine and it took a few weeks of experimenting until finally finding the correct dosage that worked for her. We learned that Lexi was also prone to urinary tract infections which could be managed by us using baby wipes to keep her backside cleaner. We also bought a baby mattress so if she had an accident, it would be easy to clean and disinfect. Sure life would be easier to have a healthier dog but after getting through the rough times with Lexi, my husband and I were blessed with an incredibly loving dog bonded closely with the entire family. We didn't have to crate her, she doesn't counter surf, and we can let her loose when hiking without a worry. She is the best behaved and calmest dog we have ever owned.

After we lost Obi, Lexi was our rock that we hugged when we were missing Obi the most. She helped us through our grief with her patience and her love. Now that we have Heidi, our Bernese Mountain Dog, they are the best of friends and Lexi's good behavior is rubbing off on Heidi. Looking back, I wouldn't have traded Lexi for a younger, healthier dog. Because we hung in there and found solutions to help manage her medical issues, Lexi shows us her gratitude with her goofy smiles and her bear hugs.