Wellard and Gladiator?
I just read that the dog who played Wellard in Eastenders was also Maximus' dog in Gladiator...and I don't know what you do with that information.
The Belgian Shepherd dog, Kyte, who played the character Wellard in the British soap opera EastEnders, also played the wolf character in the film Gladiator. Wellard was Robbie Jackson's dog in EastEnders, and All The Right Movies reported that Kyte was used in the film Gladiator because the opening was filmed in England, which had strong anti-rabies laws.