BANGKOK: A Thai dog which had its legs hacked off for chewing a pair of shoes is running free again after being fitted with the type of blades used by Paralympic runners.
Cola’s front legs were sliced off with a sword about a year ago by his owner’s furious neighbour in Bangkok.
Though a vet managed to save Cola, the incident left him with two amputated, kangaroo-like stumps for front paws.
The Soi Dog Foundation, an animal welfare group based on the resort island of Phuket, brought in a human surgeon to fit Cola with high tech carbon fibre racing blades, similar to those used by Paralympic athletes.
The lightweight legs were tailor-made for the high-energy hound, who loves to run and was previously encumbered by heavier prosthetics.
While other dogs have also been fitted with a variety of prosthetics, Cola is believed to be the first to receive the pricey ‘suspended’ blades.
The blades curl up in a ‘C’ shape, while the amputated limbs rest in a silicon socket.
Cola’s prosthetics were developed by orthopaedist Bendt Soderberg, who works at a hospital in Phuket, and are still being fine-tuned to fit the mutt.
‘What we wanted to achieve was…something that was not so heavy, that could be a bit flexible in the feet so that when he jumps and bounces they would not be completely stiff,’ said Teddy Fagerstrom, director of the orthopaedic lab.
Now Cola is back running with the pack and “is not embarrassed being an amputee. He just acts like he always does.”
Soi Dog Foundation founder John Dalley said Cola was even ready to trust humans again.
