Owners of disabled dogs often have to overcome unique challenges. These humans have dedicated their lives to helping make it a little easier to give those dogs a full and happy life.<\/p>\n
Mark Robinson: The Pet Mobility Maker<\/h3>\n
Twenty years ago, Mark Robinson created a website called HandicappedPets.com so that caretakers of disabled animals had a place to talk and share information. The group is now called Walkin\u2019 Pets and offers not only a community but a large array of products that help dogs and other animals overcome a number of different types of disabilities.<\/p>\n
Once Mark gave caregivers the space on the website, he listened to them, which led him to design and patent the world\u2019s first adjustable dog wheelchair.<\/p>\n
It isn\u2019t just the thousands of thank-you letters that fill Mark\u2019s office that confirm he has helped animals and their families. He gets to see their joy as well. One such moment happened when a family brought in their dog, Denali, who hadn\u2019t walked in years. After being fitted for his own wheelchair, Denali took off across the parking lot. It was so unexpected that nobody had thought to bring a leash with them! Now, with the help of Walkin\u2019 Pets and Mark, Denali gets to hike with his family. \u201cIt\u2019s a story about a family able to play again,\u201d Mark says.<\/p>\n
Walkin\u2019 Pets\u2019 mission statement echoes what Mark himself passionately feels and what has driven him through his career. \u201cWe believe that pets are family and that elderly, disabled and handicapped pets deserve to live a happy, healthy life.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Christina Lee and her husband adopted Nitro, a deaf Boxer, 11 years ago, they didn\u2019t know it would start them on a path to becoming advocates for specially abled pups, but that\u2019s exactly what happened. The nonprofit Deaf Dogs Rock, which Christina founded, is a place anyone can turn to for help in raising, adopting or re-homing a deaf dog.<\/p>\n When Nitro was still a puppy, Christina realized that they might have bitten off more than they could chew. The couple looked to what they knew might help \u2014 training. In class, Nitro was so bright and learned sign cues so fast he was awarded his AKC Canine Good Citizen Award by the time he was 10 months old before going on to Therapy Dog training.<\/p>\n Christina came to understand that deaf dogs have super powers because of their heightened senses. \u201cDeaf dogs are much more in tune and bonded to their person because of them constantly watching our facial expressions and body language,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n Christina’s passion to change the perception that deaf dogs are untrainable led her to start Deaf Dogs Rock, which offers a number of services to help the lives of deaf dogs everywhere. They work with partner rescues and assist by sponsoring deaf dogs and featuring them on their website, they promote and offer resources on how to use positive reinforcement training and care for a specially abled pup, and they promote stories of successful adoptions.<\/p>\n Christina gets emails daily from families that have been helped by her group. The servicers and tools Deaf Dog Rock allow owners to keep the family dog they were worried they didn\u2019t have the skills to help.<\/p>\n Ten years ago, Silvie\u2019s heart dog, Muffin, lead her to the creation of her company, Muffin\u2019s Halo Guide for Blind Dogs, focused on helping and supporting those special pups with limited or no sight.<\/p>\n At that time, Muffin, a Toy Poodle, started to bump into things. It was clear that 11-year-old Muffin\u2019s eyesight was failing. As Silvie struggled to find ways to help her pup, Muffin was also diagnosed with a mass in his stomach. While seeking treatment, a vet mistakenly lacerated Muffin, causing him to start losing blood. Silvie told God that if Muffin survived, she would dedicate her life to helping blind dogs. It was a hard three weeks, but Muffin made it and Silvie set out to keep her promise.<\/p>\n She realized that if he could \u201csee\u201d where he was going then he would be freer and happier!\u00a0 The result was Muffin\u2019s Halo, which has a harness that tightly wraps around the body, making the dog feel cuddled and safe, and foam angel wings that hold the flexible and adjustable halo in place. When Muffin wore it, he was able to \u201cbump\u201d into objects without hurting himself and be able to feel that objects were close so he would know to stop or turn away.<\/p>\n Silvie has shipped over 40,000 Muffin\u2019s Halo\u2019s to dogs worldwide. She didn\u2019t stop there. She started the nonprofit Second Chances for Blind Dogs. The organization helps fund Muffin\u2019s Halos for blind dogs\u2019 families and shelters that are not able to afford the product.<\/p>\n Silvie considers the start of her business a love story between Muffin and her, and continues working to fulfill her promise.<\/p>\n The post People Who Help Disabled Pets<\/a> by Wendy Newell<\/a> appeared first on Dogster<\/a>. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren’t considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Dogster.com.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n The post People Who Help Disabled Pets<\/a> by Wendy Newell<\/a> appeared first on Dogster<\/a>. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren’t considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Dogster.com.<\/p>\n Owners of disabled dogs often have to overcome unique challenges. These humans have dedicated their lives to helping make it a little easier to give those dogs a full and happy life.<\/p>\n Twenty years ago, Mark Robinson created a website called HandicappedPets.com so that caretakers of disabled animals had a place to talk and share information. The group is now called Walkin\u2019 Pets and offers not only a community but a large array of products that help dogs and other animals overcome a number of different types of disabilities.<\/p>\n Once Mark gave caregivers the space on the website, he listened to them, which led him to design and patent the world\u2019s first adjustable dog wheelchair.<\/p>\n It isn\u2019t just the thousands of thank-you letters that fill Mark\u2019s office that confirm he has helped animals and their families. He gets to see their joy as well. One such moment happened when a family brought in their dog, Denali, who hadn\u2019t walked in years. After being fitted for his own wheelchair, Denali took off across the parking lot. It was so unexpected that nobody had thought to bring a leash with them! Now, with the help of Walkin\u2019 Pets and Mark, Denali gets to hike with his family. \u201cIt\u2019s a story about a family able to play again,\u201d Mark says.<\/p>\n Walkin\u2019 Pets\u2019 mission statement echoes what Mark himself passionately feels and what has driven him through his career. \u201cWe believe that pets are family and that elderly, disabled and handicapped pets deserve to live a happy, healthy life.\u201d<\/p>\n When Christina Lee and her husband adopted Nitro, a deaf Boxer, 11 years ago, they didn\u2019t know it would start them on a path to becoming advocates for specially abled pups, but that\u2019s exactly what happened. The nonprofit Deaf Dogs Rock, which Christina founded, is a place anyone can turn to for help in raising, adopting or re-homing a deaf dog.<\/p>\n When Nitro was still a puppy, Christina realized that they might have bitten off more than they could chew. The couple looked to what they knew might help \u2014 training. In class, Nitro was so bright and learned sign cues so fast he was awarded his AKC Canine Good Citizen Award by the time he was 10 months old before going on to Therapy Dog training.<\/p>\n Christina came to understand that deaf dogs have super powers because of their heightened senses. \u201cDeaf dogs are much more in tune and bonded to their person because of them constantly watching our facial expressions and body language,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n Christina’s passion to change the perception that deaf dogs are untrainable led her to start Deaf Dogs Rock, which offers a number of services to help the lives of deaf dogs everywhere. They work with partner rescues and assist by sponsoring deaf dogs and featuring them on their website, they promote and offer resources on how to use positive reinforcement training and care for a specially abled pup, and they promote stories of successful adoptions.<\/p>\n Christina gets emails daily from families that have been helped by her group. The servicers and tools Deaf Dog Rock allow owners to keep the family dog they were worried they didn\u2019t have the skills to help.<\/p>\n Ten years ago, Silvie\u2019s heart dog, Muffin, lead her to the creation of her company, Muffin\u2019s Halo Guide for Blind Dogs, focused on helping and supporting those special pups with limited or no sight.<\/p>\n At that time, Muffin, a Toy Poodle, started to bump into things. It was clear that 11-year-old Muffin\u2019s eyesight was failing. As Silvie struggled to find ways to help her pup, Muffin was also diagnosed with a mass in his stomach. While seeking treatment, a vet mistakenly lacerated Muffin, causing him to start losing blood. Silvie told God that if Muffin survived, she would dedicate her life to helping blind dogs. It was a hard three weeks, but Muffin made it and Silvie set out to keep her promise.<\/p>\n She realized that if he could \u201csee\u201d where he was going then he would be freer and happier!\u00a0 The result was Muffin\u2019s Halo, which has a harness that tightly wraps around the body, making the dog feel cuddled and safe, and foam angel wings that hold the flexible and adjustable halo in place. When Muffin wore it, he was able to \u201cbump\u201d into objects without hurting himself and be able to feel that objects were close so he would know to stop or turn away.<\/p>\n Silvie has shipped over 40,000 Muffin\u2019s Halo\u2019s to dogs worldwide. She didn\u2019t stop there. She started the nonprofit Second Chances for Blind Dogs. The organization helps fund Muffin\u2019s Halos for blind dogs\u2019 families and shelters that are not able to afford the product.<\/p>\n Silvie considers the start of her business a love story between Muffin and her, and continues working to fulfill her promise.<\/p>\n The post People Who Help Disabled Pets<\/a> by Wendy Newell<\/a> appeared first on Dogster<\/a>. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren’t considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Dogster.com.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"❤\"](\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/13.1.0\/72x72\/2764.png\")
\u2004More at handicappedpets.com<\/a>.<\/p>\nChristina Lee: The Deaf Dog Advocate<\/h3>\n
\u2004More at deafdogsrock.com<\/a>.<\/p>\nSilvie Bordeaux: The Halo Hero<\/h3>\n
\u2004More at muffinshalo.com<\/a> and secondchancesforblinddogs.org<\/a>.<\/p>\nMark Robinson: The Pet Mobility Maker<\/h3>\n
\u2004More at handicappedpets.com<\/a>.<\/p>\nChristina Lee: The Deaf Dog Advocate<\/h3>\n
\u2004More at deafdogsrock.com<\/a>.<\/p>\nSilvie Bordeaux: The Halo Hero<\/h3>\n
\u2004More at muffinshalo.com<\/a> and secondchancesforblinddogs.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n