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Chelsea's Introduction
Hi, my name is Jan and this is my beautiful girl Chelsea. She has a
disease called Degenerative Myelopathy (DM) which is similar to Multiple
Sclerosis in humans. Chelsea
lost all control of her rear legs in September 1999 and has been using the
doggie wheelchair since then. Her "wheels" have given her a new
lease on life. Rolling along, Chelsea
can again take long walks in the park and chase squirrels!
 Wheelchairs
can help dogs who have difficulty or can no longer support the rear portion
of their body due to disease, accident, hip dysplasia, surgery, or old age.
However, in order to use the wheelchair, the dog must still have enough
strength in their front legs to pull themselves.
Most dogs adjust easily and quickly to the cart. To entice them, you can
use food treats or their favorite toy and coax them to come to you after
you first place them in their new cart. In Chelsea’s case, it was best not to
have our other dogs around during her maiden voyage. Because she’s
not one to accept new contraptions and she’s not food- or
toy-oriented, she couldn’t be bribed using these methods. Simply
moving several feet ahead of her and cheerfully telling her to come to
mommy, along with LOTS of praise, was all it took to get her going in her
cart. I think she was just as proud of herself as we were of her!
Overall, there are a number of devices which can help a disabled or
elderly dog move around better and give them a better quality of life. You
may need a wheelchair, a sling, booties, a ramp, specialized food bowls, or
just scatter rugs to allow traction on slick floor surfaces.
 With
encouragement, dogs adjust amazingly well to their disabled condition. As
you can see, Chelsea
is still a happy girl. Here she is lounging with her Golden siblings.
E-Mail:
Whenever possible, we’ll try to respond to questions you have about
aids and devices for disabled dogs. Just click here to send email to Jan.
We’d also love to hear about any other aids or devices you’ve
found to help your disabled dog so that we can share this information with
others.
Links:
Another site which provides information about disabled animals is Pets with Disabilities.
There is also a web site for persons who have dogs with Degenerative
Myelopathy. This is a very caring and supportive group. The address is http://www.freewebs.com/dmroster/
.
The Senior Dogs Project focuses on
the extraordinary relationships between older dogs and their companions;
encourages the adoption of older dogs; and provides information on the
special care that older dogs need.
Acknowledgements:
I’d like to thank the many people who helped with this site,
including those who will provide still more ideas in the future that we can
share. In particular, I’d like to thank Nicky and Barb, without whom,
this web site never would have been created. Also, I thank the many
wonderful friends I’ve met on the DM support group list, who are such
a creative and caring group of people and who have provided many
suggestions and ideas to help disabled dogs. I also thank my wonderful
homeopathic/acupuncture vet, Dr. D, who gives me many imaginative tips and
never seems to mind all my odd-ball questions!
And last, but never least, to my beautiful girl Chelsea, who gave me the
inspiration to develop this information. She has taught me a lot about
courage.
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Tribute
to Chelsea
On March 14, 2001, my beautiful
girl Chelsea passed away peacefully in my arms. She nuzzled me as she left,
as if to thank me for letting her go. A letter to my pretty girl follows.
Dear Chelsea,
I can't begin to tell you how very much I miss you ... the way you barked to
greet me when I came home, and the way you would smile when I stroked your
beautiful face. I know life became such a struggle for you. You reached the
point where you could not even turn yourself over due to the paralysis. But
all through the struggles of the past 3 years, you overcame each new
challenge and taught me so much about courage, how to deal with difficult
situations, and what was really important in life. I've lost count of the
number of times that I wished you were back with me, if only for a few
minutes to hold you again and tell you how much I love you, but I know that
would be so unfair to you. Your poor beautiful body was just worn out, and during
your last weeks with me, your eyes clearly told me it was time to let you go
have some peace.
Should there be such a thing as reincarnation or return of the spirit, please
consider letting me again be your mom. I would be so honored. I will try not
to repeat mistakes I may have made before, but you know I need guidance at
times. Just let me know it is you by doing your cute shadow dance that you
once did before that awful disease robbed you of your body.
Please know that I will always think about you, and while that brings tears
right now, thinking of you and your courage and spirit makes me so proud of
you. You were a wonderful ambassador for disabled dogs. I know with time that
the tears will be replaced with a smile, thinking of all the memories of you
being both naughty and nice. I think you know that I loved you and always
will. Rest in peace my beautiful girl, and once you're ready, play again with
our dear Bernie, and Kelly. Remember to give Bernie his kong toys, and keep
reminding Kelly that the frisbee you brought with you is YOURS, she has her
own! Maybe you'll also again see dear Toby who left us shortly after you came
to live with me. Perhaps you'll even met my sweet Blacky who guided me when I
was growing up. All of you were so special to me, and I know there are so
many other very special pups there as well. You are without doubt in
wonderful company. Sweet dreams my love.
Your mommy, Jan
One of the things I think Chelsea
tried to teach me was to find the good even in bad situations. I'm still
having trouble with that, but I'm trying. Certainly she tackled life that
way! Probably the best thing that resulted from her ordeal with this awful
disease was the close bond that formed between the two of us. Chelsea had always been
an independent, and sometimes aloof, girl growing up, but once her body began
to fail, she become especially loving and grew to understand that I would
always help her. The trust we had in each other was very special and is
something I will always treasure.
Another good thing was the opportunity to meet some very thoughtful and
caring people on the Internet, many also dealing with the same dreadful
disease in their precious pups. Cindi from North Carolina is one of these very
special people. She wrote these thoughts for us after learning of Chelsea's passing:
"A Letter Home"
I'm safe here and I'm happy.
I have lots of space to run.
A cool, clear stream to drink from
And a deeper part for fun.
The grass is long and lush and green
with flowers everywhere.
The air is clean and always warm
And spring is in the air.
I've made a lot of friends here
Who were cripple once, like me,
But I wish you could see us run now
We're restored, we're strong and free.
But don't think I don't miss you
And all the love we've shared,
I know you're sad and hurting
But remember that I care.
So try to be happy for me
Until we're together again.
For I'll be waiting patiently
For you ... my most loved friend.
Cindi, thanks so much for your caring thoughts, and thanks to others who have
expressed their sympathies and support. While it hurts so much when they
leave us, I can't imagine never having felt the unconditional love and
devotion that our furfaces give to us. Our time together is all too
temporary, but something I will forever cherish.
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