All dogs are special in their own way, but one dog literally stood above all the rest: at 3 feet and 5.18 inches, Zeus the Great Dane held the record for the tallest dog in the world.

But sadly, Zeus has died, following complications from a leg amputation surgery.

Zeus made headlines in 2022, when the gentle giant set the Guinness World Record for the tallest dog in the world.

“He’s been a big dog since we got him, even for a puppy. He had huge paws,” owner Brittany Davis, from Bedford, Texas, told Guinness World Records at the time.

She said Zeus would always wow people with his unusual size, and was often compared to a horse. Setting the record made it official: “We get a lot of comments like ‘Wow, that’s the tallest dog I’ve ever seen’, so it’s cool to now be able to say ‘Yes, it’s definitely the tallest dog you’ve ever seen!’”

The owner said that Zeus enjoyed eating snacks (his favorite were ice cubes), jumping over the fence to meet other dogs, and stealing food from their counters. She also said that despite his size, Zeus was a gentle dog, especially with her baby.
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After more than a year of enjoying his celebrity status as a world record holder, Zeus’ health took a sad turn: he was diagnosed with bone cancer in his front leg. On September 7, he underwent surgery to have the leg amputated.

The owners hoped the surgery would ease his pain and buy Zeus some more time: “He’s hurting now,” Brittany told WFAA. “We don’t want him to hurt. We don’t want him to be in pain. I want him to be as healthy as he can be. Mostly, I want him to be pain free and enjoy what time we have left.”

She set up a GoFundMe page to pay for the surgery. But sadly, things only took another heartbreaking turn: after the surgery, Zeus developed amputation-related pneumonia.

Today, Brittany and her family announced that Zeus had passed away. “Our baby boy is gone. Our hearts are broken,” Brittany wrote on GoFundMe. “He had the absolute best doctors who sat of the floor and cried with us. He fought hard but the pneumonia was just too much. He is not in pain anymore. He is resting peacefully.”
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“Zeus died with his head in his Mom’s lap getting ear scratches and kisses until the very end. He was 3 1/2 years old,” the family wrote in a statement to WFAA.

“We are so grateful for the time we had with Zeus. He brought us so much joy and happiness to so many people. He will be deeply missed by our entire family. We are so thankful for the amazing team of humans who have been with us through this. Zeus had the absolute best doctors and nurses working around the clock to help him, but in the end, he was just too sick. We would also like to thank everyone who has reached out to us with their condolences. It means a lot to us during this difficult time.”

“We know that Zeus is in a better place now, running free and eating the good stuff off of the countertops in Heaven. We will never forget him. Goodbye Zeusy, We Love you! Cancer Sucks!”
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Rest in peace, Zeus — truly a special, one-of-a-kind dog, who always kept his head up high ❤️ Our hearts go out to Zeus’ family during this difficult time.