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Bought my dog a wheelchair ... not sure it will work but worth a try?

Melensdad

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
At best we are just delaying the inevitable. But hopefully it will buy Misha some time and allow her to roam around the property (at least the flat parts) a little bit.

Going to have to build a bunch of ramps around the house too. We have 1 ramp going out our kitchen door but I think that one is too narrow for her to use with the wheelchair so I'll need to rebuild it and make it wider. I'll also need to build one on the other side of the house to get her into the living room, that is only 1 step so it should be easier. Might need one to get her up onto the patio too, its 1 step above the ground, but I may just put down a couple bags of topsoil and grass seed there?

Damned expensive, I hope it works: https://www.handicappedpets.com

Photo below shows the wheelchair on a dog of similar size to Misha, but that is not Misha in the photo. Should have the wheelchair by mid-next week.
 

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Looks like a good idea Bob.

Can you explain the hose? Is the wheelchair water powered or does giving the dog a water enema get them moving faster? ;)
 
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bczoom said:
Looks like a good idea Bob.

Can you explain the hose? Is it wheelchair water powered or does giving the dog a water enema get them moving faster? ;)
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Bob just wants the garden watered and Misha aint getting out of it that easy :yum::yum::yum::wink:

PS keep an eye on that under belly strap for sores as it may need a little extra padding to suit her needs.
 
That is NOT a hose on the dog in that photo. Its a dog leash. Just looks like a hose.

The chair is dog powered, by the front feet of the dog. Misha still has some use of her rear legs ... but that is dwindling each day. The wheelchair people said that as long as there is SOME use of the rear legs then I should keep it adjusted to let her rear legs work to help keep what muscles she still has from becoming too atrophied. Eventually she will wear a loop around her rear legs to keep them from dragging.
 
Melensdad said:
At best we are just delaying the inevitable. But hopefully it will buy Misha some time and allow her to roam around the property (at least the flat parts) a little bit.

Going to have to build a bunch of ramps around the house too. We have 1 ramp going out our kitchen door but I think that one is too narrow for her to use with the wheelchair so I'll need to rebuild it and make it wider. I'll also need to build one on the other side of the house to get her into the living room, that is only 1 step so it should be easier. Might need one to get her up onto the patio too, its 1 step above the ground, but I may just put down a couple bags of topsoil and grass seed there?

Damned expensive, I hope it works: https://www.handicappedpets.com

Photo below shows the wheelchair on a dog of similar size to Misha, but that is not Misha in the photo. Should have the wheelchair by mid-next week.
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You're a good man Bob with a big heart. :thumb:
 
Hope Misha adapts to the wheelchair. Great idea, Bob.

I was surprised to see that eBay has so many doggie wheelchairs listed for sale. Nice prices on the used rigs. Nice prices on the new items. Of course for our dog, price is no consideration.

Good luck.
 
Kane said:
Hope Misha adapts to the wheelchair. Great idea, Bob.

I was surprised to see that eBay has so many doggie wheelchairs listed for sale. Nice prices on the used rigs. Nice prices on the new items. Of course for our dog, price is no consideration.

Good luck.
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The problem with many of the brands that I checked out is that they are essentially custom built to your dog's measurements. At least the better brands seem to be built that way. While good for THAT dog, it might not be so good for YOUR dog if some of the measurements are off. Obviously you can adjust them for your dog IF you know what you are doing (I am not sure I know what is best). The brand I picked makes adjustments very simple, which is another reason I picked it.
 
Ours passed away a few weeks ago at 15. Coyotes had got to her when she was younger and we had to amputate one of her rear legs. She adjusted fine but in her last year she got some kind of muscle disease that began to take away her strength starting in her rear leg. By the end she could just spin in a circle. We were carrying her in and out for potty breaks. Then she started getting sores and the vet was afraid that septis was setting in. The vet said there was no more to be done so we held her while they gave her the anesthesia to take away her pain. I still miss her. Best of luck witheyour dog. They are great friends.
 
Copperhead said:
Ours passed away a few weeks ago at 15. Coyotes had got to her when she was younger and we had to amputate one of her rear legs. She adjusted fine but in her last year she got some kind of muscle disease that began to take away her strength starting in her rear leg. By the end she could just spin in a circle. We were carrying her in and out for potty breaks. Then she started getting sores and the vet was afraid that septis was setting in. The vet said there was no more to be done so we held her while they gave her the anesthesia to take away her pain. I still miss her. Best of luck witheyour dog. They are great friends.
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It is amazing what we do for our dogs, and we do it because they are worth it. Sorry to hear about your dog. We lost our 8# maltese in the spring and still miss him. Not sur what it would be like to have no dogs in our house.
 
IT WORKS :clap:

Arrived today, built it and put her in ... lots of panic and barking while I was adjusting it for her. But it works.

They suggested only a short session, so she was only in it for about 15 minutes today. I'll try again tomorrow. Again just for a short time.
 

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That's great Bob. Looks like a well built unit. She'll get used to it in time. After all, she got used to the lift harness.
 
Today she walked about 100 yards in the harness. Out the living room patio, all the way around the house out to the swimming pool, and then back again.

Every day she is getting a little better. Can't say she likes it yet. But it certainly gets her farther than without it!
 

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Would you like a wheel chair...no...but you would adapt just like Misha will....you done good.:thumb:
 
Things are not looking too good for Misha. I'm hoping its just a bad day. She is unable to stand or walk when I get her up. She now as a sore (like a bed sore) on her tail and another on her right hip. It looks like we are getting closer to the end.

Sadly her mind is very sharp, she is alert and loving and wants to be active, the rear half of her body just isn't cooperating at all. Its the worst day she's had. She has rebounded in the past, but its clearly a steady decline.
 

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Mr Skurka, you are a good man and I can think of no higher compliment to pay anybody.

I've been there and it was the saddest day of my life.
 
I have one laying around the house here from our dog that passed away. You might consider booties for the rear feet. The rear feet are going to drag and grind the toenails off till they bleed. We used booties out of Toronto. They worked great. Love the photos of your buddy
 
irongoat said:
I have one laying around the house here from our dog that passed away. You might consider booties for the rear feet. The rear feet are going to drag and grind the toenails off till they bleed. We used booties out of Toronto. They worked great. Love the photos of your buddy
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Her wheelchair has stirrups for her back feet so they don't drag.

But she is getting to the point where I'm not even sure if the wheelchair is worth the effort for her anymore.
 
Nice day today. No snow. Warm temps. Had some stuff to work on outside so I put Misha into her wheelchair. First time she's been in the chair in the past couple of months ... she can't use it inside the house because it hits furniture and walls ... and we've had snow and rain so the ground has been either covered or wet lately so she's been in her harness without the wheelchair when she goes out.

Anyway it was a pretty successful day for her. She tipped the chair and herself onto its side being excited/careless and she backed into a bush and got stuck. But she also did some exploring and a little wandering.

Since she was just on the grass I didn't bother to hook up the rear leg supports that keep her back legs from dragging. If she was spending time walking down the road I would have hooked up her legs so they didn't get sores.
 

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A couple of months ago my GSD suddenly lost the use of his rear legs. (Link here) As in Misha’s case, pressure on his spine was causing a disconnect between his brain and his rear legs. We’re a couple of months into rehab and I most definitely understand the additional effort needed to keep a normal standard of life for our pups. You’re doing a good job MD.
 
squerly said:
A couple of months ago my GSD suddenly lost the use of his rear legs. (Link here) As in Misha’s case, pressure on his spine was causing a disconnect between his brain and his rear legs. We’re a couple of months into rehab and I most definitely understand the additional effort needed to keep a normal standard of life for our pups. You’re doing a good job MD.
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Not sure how much longer we can last.

Misha has another bladder infection. She gets them because she can't stand up so when she leaks, which she does, she lays in her urine. We take her out to relieve herself often, but without full control over her rear end, she will leak. And she will continue to get these infections.

And its taking a physical toll on us too. Lack of sleep for me. Muscle pulls. My right arm (my dominant side) is in near constant pain, and I regularly pull muscles in my back. Its hard to lift and move an 85# dog, even when she has the use of her front legs.

We love her and don't want to put her down but we know its going to happen. I suspect before Easter?
 
MD, I'm sorry to hear that but there comes a time when we just have to let go. Only you can tell when that time is.
 
Well Misha and I are up at 3:15am.

This is not unusual lately. She wakes up a couple times in the middle of the night and starts barking. Some nights she sleeps all the way through the night, some nights she is up at midnight, 3am and then again at 6am. Typically she needs to go to the bathroom or just went to the bathroom. She sleeps on disposable absorbent mats, but sometimes floods them.

We are clearly at that time when she is only alive because I have not made the decision to put her to sleep. Brain is totally alert, body is now a wreck as the disease seems to be progressing up her spine. It won't be much longer. She does have good days, loves attention, but this can't continue more than a few more weeks.

My mind knows this, my heart doesn't want to let go.
 
That is so sad Bob. When they are alert and fine in that regard but other parts of the body failing one never knows when the right time is to let go. Best wishes for you and Misha.
 
I hate reading this thread. I went through the same thing with Bert 10 years ago and it's just heart wrenching. Whatever you do, just know that you've done everything you could so that Misha could live a wonderful life.
 
Sorry Bob...

It still hurts me that I don't have my Husky Shilo any more.. It has been about a month now. Hard thing to do to put him down, but as the same time his quality of life didn't suffer for long.

The cancer in my German short hair is active once again. I am afraid that soon I will have to make another hard choice..

But through all of this, I can still say having them is still a blessing. There are lessons about life and love, and pain and suffering here. This is a part of life we wish were not so. Life doesn't last forever. All good things shall pass.. and life is one of those.

When the time is right, you will know.

Regards, Kirk
 
Made an appointment for Saturday to take Misha in to have her put to sleep. Not sure if we will keep it, but it is for the best if we do. Quality of life is minimal. Only enjoyment she has now is when I sit on the floor and rub her head (which I do a lot).
 
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