One for the dog lovers

[jacksonracingcomau]

My mate's 14 year old dog (actually my dog's twin brother) finally had his lower front leg chopped off (cancer)
A medical prosthetic is $2500 !!
So I made a leather one this morning, gotta be better than the postbag tubes he's been wearing !
Bets on how good it is ?
Flat

As on dog

[yogidozer]

I had a Boxer that lost his rear leg due to cancer. Broke my heart, but he got along very well!
Wishing all of you the best

[Nic in Western NYS]

Nice work. Looks like it'll do the job.  Hope the dog has many more good times.

[Guzzistajohn]

Good job!

[Sasquatch Jim]

  I guess the boxer can't lift his other leg to pee.

[sib]

I had a Boxer that lost his rear leg due to cancer. Broke my heart, but he got along very well!
Wishing all of you the best

I know a woman who takes in dogs no one else wants.  She has a couple with three legs and they seem to do quite well.

[yogidozer]

  I guess the boxer can't lift his other leg to pee.

No he couldn't. So he had to squat.
He was my best friend, he would follow me everywhere.
He loved to hike with me on the AT. As he got older, and got tired of walking, I would carry him, to let him rest a bit.
He would lick my face non stop. His way of thanking me.
Maybe some day you'll have a friend that likes you as much.

[Rough Edge racing]

  That leg above is quite the piece  A guy I know has a boy with a deformed hand. Available affordable prosthesis wasn't doing the job..He bought a secondhand 3D printer, the device that makes real life objects some sort of resin..I think the machine was about 1500 bucks...He then designed and created a prosthesis for boy's hand than gives him the some of the functions of a real hand...Plus the boy is now "cool" and not seen as a freak by his peers...Obviously this required some knowledge of this type of process...
  Dogs are not concerned about looks....But perhaps one of the 3d printers might be just the thing to make a dog artificial legs on larger volume?

[Matt Story]

A friend had a chow mix who lacked a front leg due to being hit by a car.  He didn't have a prosthetic.  His remaining front leg was about the size of my forearm.  He could outrun me on 3 legs when I was a pretty trim 32.  'Leo' had a ton of character.

There is a big open-source movement to produce prosthetics on a widely distributed scale.  Pretty much anyone with a printer can download a model, scale it to suit and print a hand for someone in need.  Here is a link showing a few designs.  Lots of other cool stuff and some not so cool on thingiverse.com, all free for sharing.  Cant wrangle my phone to paste an url.  I'll add it later from home.

https://ultimaker.com/en/stories/36096-open-bionics-3d-printed-prosthetic-limbs

And one that's more on the mark:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2044428

[jacksonracingcomau]

Plastic may be fantastic but leather is forever !!
First steps on new leg

I didn't know he'd come straight here (100+ miles) so had to dummy up a tip, used a champagne cork and Grommy walked easily from the off. Andy will make a wooden peg/tiip maybe from pool cue and screws through leather to hold. I reckon it's better than a bought one. Worth a nice bottle of gold watch ?

Re 3 legged dogs, I've known a few too but at 14 years old there were some tricks that weren't going to get learned, this was worth the trouble

[Matt Story]

I never intended to say Grommy would be ok or better of without a peg.  Dogs do have a way to persevere.  Or to say that a plastic print leg would be better per se.  You've done great thing with the tools and materials that are on hand.  That is not to suggest any compromise was made.  I applaud you for the work.  The intuitive nature of natural and familiar materials in the hands of a skilled craftsman beat out digital modern production methods in so many ways.  Its also about what's feasibility and expedient.  I bet leather feels better against the skin as well.  Nice job!

[atavar]

And it can double as a chew toy!

[RANDM]

Good work well done Martin.

Maurie.

[Githianki]

That's pawsome!