A friend in need
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When her female Siberian Husky was found along a roadside in the country of Turkey, it had endured some of the worst abuse imaginable. Both of her hind legs were amputated below the knee for reasons that are not crystal clear.
What rescuers do know is the legs were not taken off surgically and the dog would have died had it not been taken to a shelter there. They also know the dog was not adoptable and could not have stayed much longer at the shelter, Moeller said.
While it is logical to wonder what happened, the “why” of the amputation doesn’t matter as much to them, and they have had conflicting accounts preventing them from pinpointing a specific reason. And after spending around $2,800 with the help of many volunteers who established a fund for the dog, including flying it from Turkey to New York to Moeller’s care near Nashville, they were more focused on what the dog would be capable of in the future.
They got their first chance to see the potential when the dog, renamed Triumph and in-country for about a week, took her first new steps in McMinnville last week with the help of local professionals.
Moeller, who is a friend of physical therapist Karen Pryor, brought the dog to certified prosthetist orthotist Tom Brady of Total Orthotic and Prosthetic Systems Inc. with veterinarian Dr. Helen Berschneider on-hand in a collaborative effort to improve the dog’s quality of life.
Brady, who donated his services, fashioned some corsets that would support metal “feet” padded with rubber. When the dog stood up in the office after being fitted with the feet, it was apparent Triumph would not need the little, red socks that were being used as protective padding to cover the stumps anymore.
“She walks now,” Moeller said of the dogs progress after she was fitted. “She goes out in the yard with the other dogs.”
The dog will return to McMinnville in a few weeks to be fitted with permanent prosthetics. The dog doesn’t stand level yet, but Brady said he is working on it.
“What I did was something I could do right now to get the process going and get her up and mobile,” he said, adding he is looking forward to the dog’s future. “She won’t be like a normal dog but she’ll be able to live a long, healthy life.”
That suits Moeller just fine.
As someone who cares for other special-needs Huskies, she said she became interested in Triumph after receiving an e-mail about her condition.
“It was the face. And they had her standing at a stainless steel table with the legs showing in the background in the original photograph that I got,” she said of what prompted her to want to help.
Pryor, who works with Health Sphere Wellness Center, said she will be involved with making sure the dog is walking properly and making sure the prosthetics do not hurt the dog, as well as helping her run and jump again.