Physically challenged people who lead active lives are highly regarded by society. Their perseverance and will to once again lead as normal as lives as possible is impressive and honourable. Rising to meet a challenge is an important part of life. People trying to overcome a physical liability are usually given much encouragement and assistance from family, friends and others.

While physically challenged people receive respect, praise and assistance in overcoming their physical limitations, companion animals rarely receive the same recognition or help. Being the guardians of two physically challenged canines, my wife Lynn and I have heard statements from friends and relatives questioning our decisions to allow Samantha, a Dachshund cross, and Teddy, a German Shepherd cross, to continue living. "Are they in pain? Are they happy?", are questions that Lynn and I are occasionally asked. After spending time with the dogs these people see for themselves the animals' desire to live and happy dispositions.

Companion animals can be humanely killed. This is a mixed blessing. It is reassuring to know that an animal, unlike a person, can have his/her life humanely ended. This is beneficial to those animals who are suffering and whose suffering cannot be alleviated or appropriately reduced. Unfortunately, many animals who have considerable life left in them are also destroyed.

Lynn and I first met Samantha while she was at my cousin's veterinary hospital. Samantha was one of several puppies in a litter taken to my cousin's clinic. While the other puppies were healthy, "Sam" had malformed legs. Her legs were so affected that when we first met her when she was three months old, she had never stood up. The caring staff at the veterinary clinic did not want to destroy the puppy and improved her condition significantly with physiotherapy. They hoped that she would progress enough to lead a semi-normal life.

When Lynn first set eyes on the tiny puppy, I knew that we would not be leaving without adopting the little dog. That day Sam stood for the first time. She stayed at the veterinary hospital for another month so that she could receive more physiotherapy as well as treatment for an infection that she had developed.

Sam came home a month later. She had progressed to the point where she could "walk" a little. Actually, it was more of a wriggle, but she could move about, albeit slowly.

Sam has been a part of our family for several years. Her hind legs are small, but her front legs became very strong enabling Sam to move about efficiently. What Sam lacks in speed and grace she makes up in perseverance and spirit. Her never give up attitude has enabled Sam to do many things we never thought possible - including jumping up on the couch and running modest distances. Although her feisty character has allowed Samantha to reach her potential, it occasionally gets her into trouble when she instigates altercations with our other, larger dogs who are only so tolerant of her bossy actions.

Our largest, and most dominant, canine family member was Teddy. Teddy, a large German Shepherd cross, was never challenged by any of our other dogs - except Sam and Winston, a Terrier cross. Sam often sits by the large, sliding glass doors that lead into the fenced-in yard where the dogs play. When Teddy (when he was healthy) and the other dogs, go into the yard Sam sits by the doors and nips at all the dogs as they pass through the door. There she sits, tail wagging and a clump of dog hair hanging from her mouth! While Teddy was a very powerful dog who would not allow such actions to go unchallenged from the other dogs, he never retaliated against the much smaller and physically challenged Sam.

Like Sam, Teddy has had to learn to cope with physical limitations. Unlike Sam, Teddy suffered his health problems later in life. When he was eight or nine years of age, Teddy started to lose control of his hind end. When we took him for walks, his hind end would swagger from side to side.

Teddy was examined by several veterinarians. He was poked, prodded and he had numerous x-rays taken. While the veterinarians believed that Teddy was suffering from degenerative myelopathy (degenerative radiculomyelopathy), a more positive diagnosis could not be made until more tests were done. After undergoing a variety of tests, including a cerebrospinal fluid analysis, myelogram and a radiograph, spinal myelopathy was confirmed as the disease that Teddy had. Unfortunately, there is no cure for this disease which is similar to multiple sclerosis in humans.

Teddy's illness was diagnosed in the spring of 1993. At that time the specialist indicated that Teddy might be able to continue walking on his own, albeit with increasing difficulty, until Christmas. Teddy not only continued walking on his own until that Christmas, but for some time afterward. We had him fitted for a cart at the University of Guelph's small animal clinic, while he was still mobile, in the fall of 1994. He did not require our assistance, or the aid of the cart, until the winter of 1995!

Lynn discovered that it was easiest to take Teddy for a short walk by using a large towel looped under his abdomen allowing the person walking Teddy to hold his back end up with the sling-like device. While this was awkward and physically demanding for Lynn and myself, it was the most convenient way to allow Teddy to relieve himself. After the short walk Teddy could be hooked up to his cart and taken on longer excursions - we read that exercise helped to delay the progression of the disease and Teddy enjoyed experiencing the sights, sounds and smells that our country property provided.

It was difficult at first for Lynn and I to watch a once robust and energetic dog deteriorate to a canine whose hind legs no longer supported him. Teddy's weight went from 70 to 55 pounds. While Teddy occasionally seemed frustrated with his lack of mobility, he adjusted well to his physical limitations. With our assistance, he was able to climb onto the couch as well as our bed. When our daughter Gleannan was born, Teddy would drag himself across the floor to be near her and comfort her when she was crying.

Because he is relatively stationary for most of the day, we made Teddy more comfortable by providing him with a couple of dog beds. By wrapping the beds in plastic and placing blankets on top we were able to efficiently clean any mishaps by simply washing off the plastic and washing the blankets. We did not have a supply of blankets so we purchased some from a used clothing store for a few dollars. And, to ensure that he did not become bored, we provided him with extra rawhide bones (when we were around and could monitor him to make sure he didn't choke on the bone) to keep him busy and content.

Both Sam and Teddy, through courage and perseverance, have overcome their physical limitations to lead happy, productive and relatively normal lives. Companion animals, like people, adapt well to changes in their lives. Winston, our old Terrier cross dog, has lost most of his hearing and all of his sight, but he efficiently finds his way around. In the fenced-in yard he maneuvers around most of the holes continually being dug by our young Siberian Huskies.

People feel sorry for dogs and cats who have lost a leg. Many canines and felines have been destroyed because they suffered an injury that rendered a limb useless. Rather than having the limb removed, the animal's guardians decided to have the animal destroyed. The fact is that companion animals who have had a leg removed for one reason or another lead normal lives - once they have adjusted to their new situation. I have had the pleasure of meeting numerous 3-legged animals and they were all happy, healthy and very agile.

Both Samantha and Teddy have significant physical limitations. Samantha has had hers all of her life while Teddy's condition has been in evidence for more than two years. Both dogs have displayed remarkable character in overcoming or adapting to their physical limitations. While they cannot do some of the things that other dogs can, they enjoy life and will be given every opportunity to live it to the fullest - so many others are not given this chance.

Addendum
Teddy passed away quietly in his sleep. With his passing Teddy eliminated the difficult decision that Lynn and I were beginning to consider. Teddy's condition had slowly deteriorated to the point where we wondered if humanely ending the big, gentle dog's life would be best for him.

Teddy confronted his disease with strength and determination. And while he eventually lost the fight, he enjoyed life even though his body slowly began to fail him. Teddy adapted well to his changing condition and blessed us with his good nature, love and devotion right up to his death - which was more than three years (approximately a quarter of his life) after we began to notice the preliminary signs of his illness.

Suggested Reading
Living With A Deaf Dog: A book of advice, facts and experiences about canine deafness
Living With Blind Dogs: A Resource Book and Training Guide for the Owners of Blind & Low Vision Dogs