Beau explores a new world of smells in the yard at Eddie’s Wheels

We met Bubba when Helen, the  vet tech who has cared for him ever since he was dropped off at her animal hospital, brought him here to be measured for his wheelchair.   His story was a heart-breaker.  Hit by a car, taken to a shelter, then finally to Helen’s care – Bubba had suffered a broken back and was completely twisted.    At nine months, he was used to crawling across the floor, which resulted in front legs that splayed wide when we tried to hold him up to be measured for a cart.  In fact, we had to use our therapy stand to hold him up and evaluate him for his wheels.

However, once we stood him up and supported him in a healthy normal stance, we could see that he was not  paralyzed in his rear legs, and had lots of disorganized reflexes that we could build upon in his rehabilitation.  As we discussed his case, it became clear to us that Bubba would be a great rehab candidate.  That’s why we offered to foster him.

On October 31, 20012  Erika McElwey came to meet Beau and evaluate him for rehab.  Looking at his x-rays and medical records,  and examining his body, she determined that his scoliosis was a result of his spinal injury at T-13 – L1.  In order to compensate for his injury, he had rotated his pelvis to decompress the injury, which resulted in spastic movement of his rear legs.   Because he locks his forelimbs under his chest and does alot of crawling, his upper body strength is exaggerated, but his chest (pectorals) muscles are underdeveloped.  The plan is to create a custom cart with an adjustable height saddle that allows us to decompress the spine at the point of his injury and then build strength and muscle memory to teach him to walk again.  This will accomplished with cart walking, therapeutic exercise with Erika on a land treadmill, laser therapy on the points of his lesion.  Beau will also be given a different diet to help him gain weight – he’s severely underweight.  Here Erika explains his treatment plan while Beau is supported in the stand.

Here is Erika using the dogtread to re-train Beau’s gait.  We are hopeful with strength building and gait-retraining Beau may regain his ability to walk on his own.  Only time will tell and we’ll keep you uposted.

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Albert went right back to sniffing as soon as he got his Eddie’s Wheels dog wheelchair.

Albert, a French Bulldog, who had spinal surgery in April 2011 came to see us two months ago to have stirrups put on his wheelchair.  Despite having  feeling in his feet, he was dragging his legs and “being lazy” about using his rear legs in the cart.  Nerves regenerate very slowly – only one millimeter a month, and in the time that Albert was using his cart and healing, he had lost the muscle memory he needed to remember how to walk again.   He’d also been going to hydrotherapy for over a year, but was still not “getting” the idea that he could walk on his own using his rear legs again…

By coincidence, we had just started collaborating with Erika McElwey, a canine rehab practitioner who had worked with us with our own dog, Sweet Pea, during her tenure at Rivermeadow Farm Rehabilitation Center in Windsor, Ct.    Erika is helping us to establish protocols for the use of our adjustable therapy stand and  the Pet Zen dogtreadmill we have on our premises.  We were looking for likely rehab clients for her and Albert was the perfect candidate.  After a long consultation that included taking his history, working with him outside on grass, working with him on the stand on the treadmill and doing cold laser treatments, Albert’s owner went home hopeful that these land-based therapies would get Albert back on his feet. In each session Erika re-trained Albert’s muscles by manually assisting him as he walked on the treadmill. His owner re-enforced this training at home by encouraging him to stand on his own and not rely on the cart.  Following our advice, she risked a few scrapes on his toes in order to activate the deep pain reflex and make him pick up his feet and use his legs.    After less than half a dozen sessions, Albert is now walking on his own, using his cart only for long hikes, as he still needs to regain his endurance.  But he’s working hard.  Watch these videos to see his progress:

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Jebba stands proud in Eddie's Wheels dog wheelchair

We are always asked, ” How long does it take a dog to adapt to using a dog wheelchair?”  In our experience, if a dog is unable to walk on his own and is in otherwise good health,  most dogs take right off in their carts.  That’s because we are putting them back to normal – we always position them in a normal healthy weight-bearing stance.  Their top lines are level, and they can use their rear legs if they are able to, or if not, suspend their feet in stirrups.  Most dogs respond to being placed in their carts by standing still for a moment to notice that they are, in fact, standing up.  A gentle tug on the yoke is usually all that’s needed to let them know that those wheels are meant for rolling – and once they start going, they are “on a roll”!

Jebba’s family came to us one day last summer instead of keeping that appointment with the vet to euthanize their German Shepard with degenerative myelopathy.  They could not imagine how he would adapt to being in a wheelchair – after all, he was a farm dog, working with goats and oxen on an organic farm in Ashfield, MA, not far from us (www.sanghafarm.com) .    He was such an independent dog -a working dog who had his priorities and knew his job.  Would he feel encumbered by the wheels?  There was no way to know except to try him out in one of the large GSD carts that we keep on hand for just such occasions.   Watch him as he takes his first turn in a cart…..

If ever there was a breed of dog that was designed to live in wheelchair, it’s dachshunds.  Unfortunately, 20% percent of dachshunds will suffer from intervertebral disc disease.  Often as not, surgeries can relieve the pain but paralysis is still often the result.   However, rear leg paralysis doesn’t keep a dachsie down, and it’s usually instantaneous that these feisty little dogs take off in their wheels, as was the case with Princess…..

Of course, there are some dogs who will take longer to get used to a cart.  Usually these are dogs who have limited mobility on their own and don’t see any advantage in using a wheelchair.  We usually advise folks who have these dogs to take their dogs for a walk, trailing the cart behind them, and put the dog in the wheelchair once they are too tired to continue to walk on their own.  Once dogs make the connection between the cart and increased freedom, mobility and independence, they come to love their wheels.  See the joy that Scout, a lab with disc disease, experiences in his wheelchair……

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Tiny quadriplegic chihuahua mauled by a larger dog recovers mobility in a custom walker with a headrest

Little Gus, a 3 lb. chihuahua was shaken by the neck by a husky and rendered quadriplegic.  But he and his family did not give up on him.  Time is a great healer, and once Gus was past the crisis in his injuries, his family went looking for a mobility aid that would support his rehabilitation.  We designed a tiny walker with headrest.  Gus had been down for a year, so for the first half hour we watched as Gus’s body stretched  and adjusted to being supported in a standing position.  He had lost most of his core muscle strength and listed to one side, so we added additonal padding to the side to bolster him and keep his body aligned.   Slowly but surely his legs reached to the ground and he moved the cart on his own.

Nikki’s all smiles in her custom curved cart to compensate for her scoliosis

Nikki, a malamute with spinal curvature so severe as to be crippling came to us to see if there was any way we could build her a rear wheel cart.   After taking some careful measurements, we were able to design a cart that matched the curvature of her back and offset the wheels so that her legs would not interfere with the wheels.

Curved cart for dog with scoliosis by Eddie’s Wheels

One of the benefits of working with Eddie’s Wheels is that we can and will customize our standard designs to make a wheelchair work for a pet who might otherwise not be a candidate for a pet wheelchair.  Spinal curvatures, fatty lipomas, external fixators, cervical instability, and size (either tiny or giant) present us with design challenges, but we can meet them.

We recently built a cart for a disabled sheep, Summer, who lives at  Animal Woodstock Farm  Sanctuary.  She became disabled due to meningeal worms, but the real challenge was that when she came to measured in late April, she still had her winter fleece, which was 8 inches deep.  Once shorn she would go from 19″ wide to 11 inches wide.  So we had to make detachable siderails and two yokes to compensate for the seasonal differences in size.  She was also very weak due in her front legs from having fallen on her knees and needed a cart that would take some weight off her front legs initially, and allow for more weightbearing as she rehabilitated.  We built a cart with a variable axle to allow for this adjustment.

Summer with her winter fleece

Summer’s cart shows her width at the rump with fleece and her width on the sides once she was shorn.

The design of the saddle, being a solid welded saddle that is angled to match the angle of an animals’ pelvis makes it easy and natural for the animal to center its body to the saddle.  For Summer, we made a saddle that also allowed for more room in front so as not to chafe her udder, which has very delicate skin.

The removable saddle makes it easy to load a large 140 lb. animal into a cart – no lifting is necessary, simply thread the legs into the saddle holes and walk the sheep back into the cart.  Summer literally came back to life before our eyes, after having almost given up hope of ever walking again.

Summer with Sheila the farm manager and Eddie after making her way back into the field.

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Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary's sheep, Summer, stood for the first time in her custom wheelchair

When Sheila, the farm manager of Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary called us to help them with Summer, a sheep disabled due to meningeal worms, we were grateful that we had spent a year providing wheelchairs to Spin, another disabled sheep.    Summer arrived here with a full fleece, over four inches thick, but she was due to be shorn a week later.  So besides the usual challenges of building a cart for a 140 lb. farm animal, we had to take into account the differences in her size and width, depending on the  state of her fleece.

This is how Summer looked the day we measured her being 19" wide.

Two days before we were  about to deliver Summer’s cart, Sheila called to say that Summer had injured her knees  trying to stand, and had given up even attempting to stand on her own.  We were concerned that she was losing the will to live, and made some accommodation to the wheelchair so that, if necessary, we could add front wheels to keep her upright.

We drove out to Woodstock on Mother’s Day to deliver the wheels for Summer, as we didn’t want her to make the 3 hour journey to our shop.  We knew that being in familiar surroundings with the support of her flock would make a huge difference in how motivated the sheep would be.  When we arrived Summer was in the barn, wrapped in blankets to keep her warm, being petted by one of the sanctuary’s regular volunteers.  It didn’t take us long to get her up and standing in the cart – it has a removable saddle, which made it easy to lift her into the cart, and the indented siderails, designed to fit her without her fleece on, fit perfectly.  The variable axle allowed us to position the wheels so that we could take 20% of her own body weight off her sore front legs and knees.  At first she did nothing but stand and let herself be petted.  The rest of the flock came in to see what was happening, while the farm staff cheered her on.

Summer's flock came into the barn encourage her

We  eventually led her to the barn door, holding the yoke to provide her with the stability she needed in the front legs.  In this video, you can see her indicate that her knees are sore. Gradually, she took small steps on her own, and over the period of an hour, she worked her way out into the pasture to graze with her flock.  Everyone was thrilled and astonished at how well she did.

What we learn over and over in our dealings with animals of all species is how important it is to support them in a healthy normal weight bearing stance.  Once that is achieved, the animal feels normal again, and walking in the cart is a natural response.  We watched as Summer got her rear legs under her pelvis and was able to use one rear leg normally.  The afflicted left leg needed to be repositioned by Sheila, but after awhile, we saw Summer’s ability to control her posture and foot improve.  We believe that this cart is the beginning of Summer’s rehabilitation.

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Marco, a sweet pitbull puppy, waits patiently for someone to love

If people understood what a daily joy it is to share your life and home with a disabled dog, it would be easy to find homes for pets such as Marco.

Marco  was hit by a car and brought to an animal hospital in Burlington, VT  a couple of months ago.  The vet tech who has assumed responsibility for his care contacted us immediately to get him some wheels and we provided a loaner cart while we built him a custom cart as his permanent mobility cart.    When we first met him, fresh from the trauma of his accident,  paralyzed in both rear legs and homeless, we were enchanted by his friendliness, gentleness and good nature.   When he came back a few weeks later, we were amazed at his progress.  He’d regained his confidence, and took off in his custom cart like he was born to drive.

Marco is a typical pitbull puppy, slightly goofy, wanting only to play and please his humans.  He likes other dogs, and even when my dogs put him in his place for being an obnoxious youngster, his response was neither defensive or aggressive.  He just wants to play.

His caregiver, Jen feels that Marco has a higher mission in life and would make a great therapy dog, a wonderful ambassador for both his breed and the plight of disabled dogs everywhere.  He loves children and plays constantly with her 3 year old child.  He’s great with other dogs.  And he’s getting better – there is a good chance he may rehab out of his cart over time.

Having adopted Sweet Pea, an adult pitbull who was rescued by the ASPCA, five years ago when no one else would come forward to give her a home, I can only say that she’s one of the most wonderful dogs I have ever been blessed to share my life with.  She loves her job at Eddie’s Wheels, teaching new dogs how to use their wheelchairs, and she loves the attention she gets when she’s out in public strolling in her cart.  We feel confident that Marco will enrich the life of anyone who takes him into their heart.

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Hunter was ecstatic to be mobile again in a dog wheelchair.

We received a phone call  from a local person the other night – he’d been told by his vet that he should think about putting his five year German Short Pointer down because he had suddenly “gone down” in the rear and was incapable of walking on his own.  The well-meaning veterinarian told him he needed to make some hard decisions based on his pet’s best interest and potential quality of life. After all – this was a young dog, used to a high level of activity, spends lots of time outdoors and in the woods – certainly you couldn’t expect a this dog to put up with a wheelchair.

The owner was calling in the hope that we’d be able to try Hunter out in a cart and see how he’d respond to being in a dog wheelchair.  We told them to come right over.

Hunter was just as upset with his disability as his family was.  He clung to his “dad” and needed reassurance that this was not a vet’s office and we wouldn’t be doing anything that would make him more uncomfortable.  We did our basic evaluation by using a Helpemup Harness to stand him up and see just how much feeling and strength he had.  We found that he had reflexes in both his feet, had control over his bladder and bowels, and that his tail could still wag.  We took his measurements and then went out on our deck and found him a recycled cart that was  the right size.  We adjusted the height and length to make it fit him perfectly and took him outside.

At first his legs dragged behind him, but then spontaneously his legs kicked into gear – fired by those reflexes we knew he had and before long he was walking in the wheelchair.  We made another height adjustment to give him perfect traction and he started running in the cart.    Hunter’s whole face lit up with joy and relief – as did his family’s.

The moral of this  story is this – don’t let your vet’s skepticism about your dog’s ability to use a wheelchair stop you from trying.  Most dogs with mobility challenges are not giving up on life – and they will adapt to using a cart.  After a short period of time, they simply forget about the wheels and go back to being dogs.   A well fitted cart can save a dog’s life – and give him the time to heal from traumatic injuries.

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I just wanted to thank you on behalf of All 4 Paws Rescue for your gift of mobility for our special little Peanut!  Since the introduction of her wheels, we have seen a spark in Peanut’s eye that had been lacking since we met her several months ago.  Peanut is happy to run and play and has a puppy energy that we never saw in her before.  We can’t thank you enough for the gift you have given her!!!  Here are some pictures of our Peanut in her new cart.  Thank you from all of us at All 4 Paws Rescue!  All the best to you and yours!

Kristen Schlichtig
All 4 Paws Rescue, Inc.
website – www.all4pawsrescue.com
email – all4pawsrescue@comcast.net

PEANUT’S STORY All She Had Ever Known Was Pain When we met Peanut in early February 2011, her condition was a disgrace. She had been found on the streets of Philadelphia and was dumped at the always crowded Animal Control Facility where she would be euthanized.  She weighed a mere 13 lbs for a body that should weigh closer to 40 lbs.  Her legs were curled underneath her making walking almost impossible.  Her tiny stature and emaciated frame led us to believe she was a puppy.  Somehow thinking she was a puppy made dealing with her awful condition a bit easier for us at All 4 Paws – the mindset was that at least she hadn’t been suffering for too long. After being evaluated by our veterinary team, the cruel reality became more evident. Peanut was estimated to be more like 2-3 years old.  Her condition was not the result of an injury – instead she had been born with her legs deformed and no one ever helped to correct this.  We learned through x-rays that Peanut was born without knee caps.  The result was for her to walk in a way that caused her spine to fuse on top of itself making her hunched over.  Her hips began to spread causing hip dysplasia.  The pain this poor dog was in during the course of her life is unthinkable. Not only had this poor, sweet dog lived in this condition, but someone then starved her. This left her barely able to stand since all muscle had deteriorated.  Further evidence concluded that this pathetic dog had given birth to puppies at some point in her life.  This was not a dog that lived on the streets – this was a dog that someone tortured and then threw away. The neglect and cruelty that Peanut suffered is the perfect example of why we work as hard as we do at All 4 Paws Rescue to save unwanted and mistreated animals. Without our devotion, dogs like Peanut would never know what it’s like to have consistent meals and warm beds. Peanut now receives the love and attention she deserves in her foster home while we work to raise money to get her a scooter to carry her hind end for her.  Please help us to give all of the dogs we rescue the happy home they deserve. Your help allows us to rescue and rehabilitate more and more animals.  Together, we can make a difference in these animal’s lives. Eddie’s Wheels: It’s the generosity and caring of our former customers that allows us to help dogs such as Peanut.  When our clients recycle their no longer needed wheelchairs with us, they do so in the hopes that some less fortunate dog will be helped.  How lucky for Peanut that a cart just the right size was here waiting for him.  We were delighted to see how well it fit, and the joy it is bringing to Peanut life! We also applaud the GOOD WORK of rescue groups who take on the burden of disabled animals.  Their compassion inspires us all to do more to help disabled animals.

Website provided by Vistaprint

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Neikko's smiling because the cart takes the pain out of standing and walking

When Neikko, a six year old Akita, showed up here for a wheelchair, I was skeptical that he’d use it.    He was able to stand and walk, but not very far, and his family told me that he had not been able to go for a real walk for almost 2 years.  The reason?  Bad hip dysplasia, arthritic knees as a consequence of compensating for congenitally bad hips, and complicated by Wobbler’s Syndrome  – a narrowing of the disc space in his cervical spine.  Neikko was beginning to show signs of neurologic impairment, and his owners wanted to get him in wheels before he really became paralyzed or unable to walk at all.

After measuring him, we found a new cart on our deck that had been exchanged for a larger cart just a week before.  It was almost exactly the right size and configuration for him, so we tried him out and you can see the smile!    It was interesting watching him test out the wheels.  First he fully extended his rear legs behind him, giving them a long stretch, only to discover that he didn’t fall and the cart was holding him up.  Then he was ready to take it outside for a test drive.  Down the ramp he went, with his tail a plume of joy.

Watch his first walk in the wheels:

Dogs are so stoic – it is always hard to know how much pain an animal is suffering, but an unwillingness or inability to go for a walk is a sign that should not be ignored.  I am always amazed at how intuitively dogs utilize their carts.  Once Neikko  understood that the cart was holding him up, he postured his legs under his hips, knowing that he could rest on the center of the sturdy padded saddle and take some weightbearing off his legs..  I watched as he walked, and trusted that the cart was supporting him even as his hips collapsed.  His gait improved in the short time it took him to walk from the front door out to his car.   If he uses this cart for regular walks of increasing length, he’ll build muscle mass around his arthritic joints, and have more muscular  support for the times that he’s not in his cart.  What a pleasure to help a young healthy dog lead a more comfortable life!

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Casey tries on her first wheelchair

Casey, a 6 month old St. Bernard puppy was born with paralyzed legs and lives at Angel’s Gate, an animal hospice and sanctuary in Delhi, NY.   Eddie’s Wheels has been providing carts to Angel’s Gate for many years, and so when Sue Marino contacted us about Casey we were eager to help her.   The problem, of course, is that Casey is only half her potential adult size, so we were lucky to find a used cart on our deck that we could donate to Angel’s Gate now.  When Casey outgrows this one, we hope to be able to find another used cart that she’ll be able to grow into.

Casey was born paralyzed due to sepsis – that means that her spinal column is weak and malformed.  As a result, as soon as Casey is placed in a standing position, her legs go spastic – kicking and flailing uncontrollably.  Without the use of our adjustable therapy stand, it would have been almost impossible to measure her.

Casey stretching out in our adjustable therapy stand

We stood Casey up in the stand for almost an hour, letting her body stretch out and observing what her legs were capable of once she was supported in a healthy normal stance.  It never ceases to amaze us to watch what happens when disabled dogs are supported this way.  Gradually the rear legs reached to the floor and the spastic running motions she makes calmed down.  We were able to see that the wrists of her forelimbs were weak from lack of weight-bearing exercise.  Everyone agreed that it was necessary to get this girl up and walking again.

Sue Marino decided on the basis of seeing this to order an adjustable therapy stand for Casey.  As she grows, the stand can adjusted to her new dimensions.  It can be placed over a land treadmill to give her strength-building exercise.   Therapeutic standing will allow access to all four legs for physical therapy – stretching, massage, acupuncture.

We expect to see Casey again in couple of months when she outgrows her first cart.  Here she is walking out to the car in her first set of wheels.

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