The world's tallest dog has died at the age of three

The world's tallest dog, Zeus the Great Dane, has sadly passed away at the age of three.

The pooch was incredibly large, even for his species.

However, he was tragically diagnosed with bone cancer and it was ruled he would have to have his leg amputated.

His family launched a GoFundMe in the hopes they could support his battle.

"We want to do everything in our power to give Zeus a fighting chance, to provide him with the medical attention, treatments, and medications needed to improve his quality of life and potentially extend his time with us," they said in the fundraiser.

He went in for surgery earlier this month and the surgeon said it 'couldn't have gone better'.

"He did so well! He’s awake from the anesthesia and on a bunch of pain medicine. He will stay for the weekend but he’s doing very well and everyone loves him already!" his family wrote on Instagram.

However, a few days later, the family was informed that Zeus had suffered some 'complications' post-surgery.

"They noticed he didn’t want to eat and he was more lethargic. He had a slight fever last night, which has cleared but he’s still lethargic. He also has some bluing around his mouth," they said.

"They did blood work and chest X-rays. They discovered he has aspiration pneumonia which means he has fluid and bacteria in his lungs."

The family begged people to pray for the dog's speedy recovery.

But sadly, Zeus couldn't fight the pneumonia.

"He is no longer hurting. Mom was there holding his head and scratching his ears every second. He was so very, very loved. He had a big life in a short time. His doctors tried absolutely everything be he was too sick," the dog's Instagram page said.

"Thank you to every single person who sent us love and prayers. Please keep our family in your prayers during this very difficult time."

Zeus claimed a Guinness World Record in 2022 for being the tallest dog on Earth.

He was clocked at 1.046 m (3 ft 5.18 in) tall during the official measuring.

The dog's mum, Brittany, said: "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."