Special Pet Space

Where your special pet is precious...

Most pet owners would do just about anything for their four-legged friends. A woman in Rosharon, Texas, has helped hundreds of pet owners by developing a device that helps dogs get around. A devastating medical diagnosis for Laurie Miller's beloved dachshund, Penny, who had surgery for a ruptured disk and could no longer walk, led to she and her husband coming up with a doggie cart to help it get around.

"We looked for carts and my husband was like, 'I could build her something,'" Laurie says. After trial and error, they found a cart design that worked by lifting the dog's hips so she could roll along. Through word of mouth, a business was born. A website helps the Millers sell the Dogs To Go carts for between $50 and $110.

"One reason the carts are so inexpensive is that their parts are pretty affordable," Miller said. "They're made from PVC pipe and stroller wheels." And the Dogs To Go carts have changed the lives of many pets and their owners.

Now Laurie wants owners of disabled pets to know about a site just for your special needs pet, http://specialpetspace.net76.net/. The editors of SpecialPetSpace say "SpecialPetSpace is your place to share stories about your precious disabled or special pet!"

Understanding the needs of handicapped pets and helping one care for them is very important, and one way people can do this is to share their stories. Thousands of people are caring for pets with special needs; senior, geriatric, injured, recovering from surgery, cancer, terminal illness, arthritis, paralysis, physical handicaps and more. Communicating with others who share this special experience with pets can make the journey a little easier for all involved, and SpecialPetSpace provides a place to share videos, audio, photos and stories about your precious disabled or special pet.

In The Interest of Preventing More Pet Disabilities...

Okay, here's one in the vein of trying to keep more animals (and others!) from becoming disabled due to unnecessary injuries:

The UK website, Fit For Life, carries this tidbit from the November 3, 2007 edition of Veterinary Record, the British medical journal. It was contributed by vet Graham Campbell, who asked for it to be as widely publicized as possible. (If you're squeamish, read with care but please don't ignore.)

Graham describes a woman coming to the surgery covered in blood and holding a small Jack Russell terrier. The dog had approached and licked the top of a shredder that had been left on standby. The shredder ripped out and shredded the dog's tongue.

With more of us having these devices in the home to guard against identity theft, the risk of accidents increases. It isn't just small dogs; it's cats, children, your hair, even that long drifty scarf wrapped around your neck. It's whatever touches the shredder when you lean over it to reach something else or to put something through it.

Best solution? Put all shredders out of reach and keep them unplugged unless you're standing there, feeding paper in.