Jack Hanna doesn’t remember most of his family over ‘advanced’ Alzheimer’s: ‘Real hard some days’

nypost.com:

told The Columbus Dispatch. “And I’m going to hang onto them for as long as I can.”Jack’s wife and daughters Kathaleen, Suzanne, and Julie revealed that he now only remembers his wife of 54 years, his dog Brassy, and, occasionally, his eldest daughter Kathaleen.He has been battling the disease in private since he was diagnosed in 2019.The 76-year-old resigned from his post as director emeritus of Ohio’s Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Dec.

2020.“He just stopped remembering who I was in all ways. Whether it was in person or by phone, he had no idea I was his daughter,” Suzanne told the outlet. “I think it’s because he didn’t see me as much because I got married so young and I moved away.”As he continues to battle the disease, Jack’s only sense of normalcy is the daily two-mile walks he takes with Suzi, she notes.“I want to hold on to these walks as long as I can,” she told the outlet. “I remember the day this all officially started.

The day the doctor told us what it was. I’ve just tried to hang on to the little pieces of Jack since then.”“My husband is still in there somewhere,” Suzi went on. “There are still those sweet, tender moments — you know, pieces of him that made me and the rest of the world fall in love with him.”Suzi said that taking care of her husband has been “real hard some days, but he took care of me all those years, and so it’s my turn to take care of him.”Elsewhere, Jack’s eldest daughter Kathaleen said they decided to share such intimate details of her dad’s condition in a desperate bid to help others dealing with the same.“If this helps even one other family, it’s more than worth sharing dad’s story,” Kathaleen said.