Dogs in wheelchairs

Some of these are for rehabilitating foot and leg injuries, so the dogs won't be stuck in them for life.
 
The dogs look happy enough and if it gives them a bit more enjoyment for a few more years then I am all for it.
If any of them showed signs of distress then it would be a different matter.
The dogs are not on wheels for our enjoyment so that makes a big difference to me.
 
My dogs will need a hole in the ground before they need wheels.

My feelings are exactly the same, if the dog doesn't have a decent quality of life then very often the kindest thing to do is to euthenise. Incidentally before anyone asks yes I feel pretty much the same about humans myself included.
 
the dogs looked happy and someone loves the dogs enough to buy them.win win .if they looked sad then cruel but they don't.great owner even if it's not what you personally would do
 
Humans sometimes mentally struggle with crippling illness and injuries, and we can vocalise our frustrations.
Animals can not vent feelings of frustration and hide pain ! So for me a crippled animal should always be PTS. I understand the guilt and pain of having an animal PTS but if you care about your pets wellbeing there is no other way.
 
I have worked on government military reservations and research facilities where cull hunts were set aside for disabled veterans.

If you could not walk, would you hunt from a wheelchair, or just give up the outdoors and stay at home until you were put to sleep?

I think that dogs, and horses, like people have situations unique to every one of them.
 
I think that dogs, and horses, like people have situations unique to every one of them.

Absolutely agree with that.
To see the dogs enjoying themselves running around with their 'attachments' was a joy to see.
Obviously, once they show signs of distress or difficulty then the situation would be different and suitable action would be taken.
 
I think that every case should be taken on it's merits.

You often see a dog out on a walk that has lost a leg and copes very well. Although that's mostly when the loss has happened early in in the dog's life. Many people have working dogs. There comes a time when those working dogs are too old to work. Do we put them to sleep because they can't work? I'd like to think we don't! I had an old picking up dog until a year ago. There came a time when he couldn't get about as much and I stopped taking him. He wasn't happy, especially as I took the younger dog. But he got used to it after a while and knew to stay in his bed those mornings when I had "those clothes" on and enjoyed his lie in. When I got back, I would hide a pheasant or two somewhere in the garden and I'd set him off to find them. He loved that.

So to those who are just a tad quick to say PTS, I'd say that you have to weigh up all the pros and cons and remember that dogs can be very versatile and accommodating, with the ability to cope with disability, even loss of sight or hearing pretty well. Of course you have to look at their situation from a detached viewpoint and with the dog's best interests at heart. The dog's quality of life is the thing, of course, but just because their quality of life is diminished, doesn't mean there's none there.
 
For me, I cannot say the wheels thing is acceptable, with back end paralysis comes incontinence etc etc. I think each on its merit, but in reality the "keep them going at all cost" thing is our inability to deal with the possible loss and a little of the over ambitious veterinary intervention now available.

A dogs life should be simple, thats why we all admire them, eat sleep and hunt, when we pick the pup from the nest we should sign up to being humane and honest about the "last day" and do what needs to be done, when circumstance calls on us to do it, for our loyal friend.
 
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