Tessa update

Tessa is doing great and today had her stitches removed. A really good bath is now in store before putting her up as available for adoption. Please check the Available Dogs site for her information.

Roo learning to use his cart

We worked with Roo this morning for a while. For the most part, we are still holding the cart from the back while he walks, keeping the main rods parallel to the ground, and using a collar and leash to guide him and get him to move forward. We were able to let go of his cart in short bursts and have him walk on his own, and we'll be working on increasing the length of time he's using his cart all by himself. His enthusiasm to just act like a normal doggie is amazing. For once, I was glad to see him go into a barking frenzy when another dog walked by, because he engaged all of his muscles and tried to move towards the dog. He'll be going for his physical therapy evaluation next week.

Christian has been taking him out and it seems to have helped get a lot of muscle tone in his back legs. Renee commented yesterday that Roo's back legs had developed a lot since she'd seen him. It's really good to know that he can make such progress so fast. Despite his challenges, he seems to be pretty robust and healthy. I'm looking forward to seeing his progress with his chair, and I'm glad we have such great donors!

Roo's New Wheels!

The big day arrived yesterday - Roo's cart came in and he had his fitting and first lesson in how to use it. We're so proud of this resilient young pup! And thank you to everyone who helped him get his new charriot. The next step for Roo is physical therapy and training to use his cart. His back leg muscles are not used to supporting him in the position he needs to be in to use the cart. Thank you to Eddie's Wheels www.eddieswheels.com for building such a great mode of transportation for Roo, to Renee Wallis of PAWSitive Rehabilitation www.pawsrehab.com in San Diego for her help in getting Roo measured and fitted for his cart, to John J. for getting the process started, and to Corrina M. and Jo Anne D. for driving Roo from Los Angeles to San Diego and back for his fitting. We'll keep you updated on his progress and let you know more when we have a physical therapy plan.