By Tyler Wright
After a generous donation of time and expertise from the Emerald Men’s Shed, a poodle born with a congenital defect has been given a new lease on life.
Rhapsody, four, was born with cerebellar hypoplasia, leaving her with the inability to walk or stand without assistance.
“As soon as she tried to stand up, she’d struggle to take a step or two and then she’d fall over,” owner Jane Gamble said.
Jane said her family tried many ways of helping their dog, with someone giving them the idea of buying a wheelchair from America.
“We made contact with the company…they said ‘it comes in a thousand pieces, and you have to put it together yourself, and we can’t guarantee it’ll be the right size’,” Jane said.
After putting the idea of buying a wheelchair on the backburner until Rhapsody’s family believed she was fully grown, Jane then approached the Emerald Men’s Shed for assistance.
“We went into the men’s shed and presented them with our problem. We showed them a picture of the wheelchair that the American company sent us, and they said, ‘oh, we can do something along those lines,’ she said.
“They pulled all their resources together and talked to each other and made a few prototypes, fitted Rhapsody out a few times and changed it until they got something that would work for her.”
The first wheelchair was made with two fixed legs in the back and front wheels that could swivel, but as Rhapsody grew stronger she would break the front wheels off the device.
Men’s shed members would then get back to work with square steel to create a sturdier wheelchair, made with back wheels from a child’s bike and front wheels from a human wheelchair.
“We originally painted it silver and it looked terrible, so then we repainted it black which looks a lot nicer,” Emerald Men’s Shed president Alan Bennett said.
“Bridget and her mum [Jane] take the dog for walks most mornings, and are of course very appreciative for what we do.”
With the stability of a wheelchair, Rhapsody has been able to enjoy walking around Emerald Lake, the local dog park and even the beach for around 18 months.
“We had to wait until the tide was right so the sand was as hard as it could be,” Jane said.
“It’s been really fantastic because not only has it made her stronger because it’s allowed her to develop the muscles in her legs, but it’s made her much more sociable.
“They expect to see a dog with advanced muscle wastage, but this dog is as strong as strong now. The wheelchair has really improved her general health.”
