My 12-year-old male dog ELMO, a 118 lb. Boxer-Rottweiler mix, had been limping and I thought there was something stuck in his paw. I had noticed other changes in his behavior over the last year as well; he had stopped jumping up on the couch where he likes to nap, He had stopped digging holes in the backyard and lastly, at least a year ago, he had stopped coming up the stairs to our outside deck. I brought him to the vet and he was diagnosed with joint health problems.

I started him on 4 NZYMES® Antioxidant Treats a day for 2 weeks on March 18, 2000. I then lowered the dosage to 2 treats a day as instructed on the label. I noticed an improvement in Elmo after about 4 weeks. He's stopped limping and just this week I caught him taking naps on our couch again.

Today, I found a 3-foot hole in the backyard - some of Elmo's work. Elmo still shows some stiffness in his hind legs when rising and he hasn't yet made it up our deck staircase (the final test). So now, I am increasing his NZYMES® dosage to 3 a day in hopes that it will improve this stiffness. I've also changed his food to Eagle Pack Senior Care dog food 2 weeks ago.

Update: 6/4/00 - GREAT NEWS - Elmo made it up my deck staircase today! Today when my stepfather, Charlie, came over - Elmo was in the yard. Charlie came up the stairs to the deck and Elmo followed him to the bottom of the stairs and sadly sat down. So, Charlie entered the house from the deck and mentioned how sad it is that Elmo can't make those steps anymore. Then after about 2 or 3 minutes - Elmo suddenly appeared on the deck. I must say that Elmo is just crazy about Charlie - because he always acknowledges Elmo and gives him a dog biscuit.

Update 6/28/00 - Since my last email, Elmo came up the deck stairs 2 more times Both occasions were when there were people in my house he wanted to see, so - he came up the steps. Who knows, maybe if my stepfather (who Elmo loves) lived here, then Elmo would come up those steps every day.

All in all, I see a definite improvement in his mobility. He now lifts his leg when he urinates, and is back to digging big holes in the yard. These are things he stopped doing last year. He now can put his full weight (118 pounds) on both paws. (And that's a lot of weight!) By the way, Elmo officially turned 12 years old on May 31, 2000.

It's sad that dogs have such a short life span, compared to humans, but I like to think I could make his stay on earth a healthier one, and he could live out his twilight years free from pain. Overall - I think NZYMES® have improved Elmo's health. His face even looks brighter and more alert. He loves the NZYMES® and takes them just like they are special treats.

Update 6/3/03 - As I was placing a reorder of NZYMES®, I thought I'd drop you a note to let you know that Elmo is still hanging in there. He turned 15 years old on May 31, 2003. I give him 3 NZYMES® Antioxidant Treats a day & Eagle pack Senior dry dog food. His appetite is still very good. His hind legs are very stiff now and I sometimes have to help him rise to a standing position, but he can still walk on his own. About a year ago, we adopted Lucy, a pit bull/boxer mix, from a local shelter. She is now 1 1/2 years old and I give her 1 treat a day as preventive maintenance dose.

Update: September 30, 2003
I'm writing to inform you sadly on September 20, 2003 we had to have our dear Elmo euthanized.The vet at the animal hospital said she doesn't see many dogs the size of Elmo living to that age.

It was a very hard decision but his quality of life had diminished. In July, Elmo started losing his appetite and for about a year, he had lost control of his bodily functions. He would sleep most of the day and pant heavily most of the time. It would have been cruel to let him linger. He was 15 1/2 years old and in human years we estimated his age to be around 115 due to his weight and breed. I do feel that the NZYMES® helped Elmo live out his full life span.