Heather Kalinowski is a pet lover and new mom who spends her days helping other pet owners protect their pets with cat and dog insurance. Trupanion offers 90% coverage for diagnostic tests, surgeries, medications, and mobility devices if a pet becomes sick or injured.
Pet owners are always looking for ways to provide the best quality of care and quality of life for their pets. When a crisis strikes, resulting in a disabled pet, these pet owners will be looking for options to keep their pet living a happy, healthy life. Pet mobility devices are just one option.
There are three different kinds of mobility devices: orthotics, prosthetics, and carts.
- Orthotics are external support structures for a pet’s leg that help reduce pain and maintain comfort. They can be used long-term or for support during the healing process.
- Prosthetics are used to replace a missing leg or portion of a leg that has been amputated due to a traumatic accident or illness. The device allows the pet to maintain the same level of activity as a pet with all four legs.
- Carts, often called ‘pet wheelchairs’, are frames in which a pet is placed that replace back-end mobility. Carts are designed to provide support and easy maneuverability for an immobile pet. Typically, a pet must have normal front leg strength in order to power the cart.
These assistive devices aid in the well-being of the pet by correcting or accommodating the pet’s leg, including stabilizing a neurologically deficient limb, providing support for a weak joint, or preventing the shortening of muscles.
A pet can become disabled due to trauma, illness, or old age, but the most common health conditions treated with mobility devices are the following:
- Neurologically deficient limbs
- Paralysis
- Weak joints
- Shortening of muscles
- Amputation of limbs
- Recovery from surgery
- Elbow dysplasia
- Osteochondrosis
- Arthritis
Mobility devices can even sometimes replace a more traumatic treatment, such as amputation, so it’s important to have all the options available to make the best decision for the pet.
Have you ever had to utilize a mobility device for your pet?
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