Malaysian Couple Makes Affordable Wheelchairs For Doggos Who Struggle To Walk
Che Wey and Yee Leng have made more than 150 pet wheelchairs since 2017.
By Tamara Jayne — 04 Dec 2019, 06:16 PM
Dogs with disabilities or who are too weak to stand on their own in Malaysia are often euthanised to "put them out of their misery"
Instead of leaving them to this fate, Wong Che Wey and his wife Cheng Yee Leng decided to start a company that makes wheelchairs for our furry pets!
Dog Wheelchair Malaysia began in 2017 when Wong stumbled upon a paraplegic dog named Frosty on Facebook.
Frosty needed help to be relocated because he would often drag his hind legs around, causing him to develop severe skin damage.
Wanting to give the lil' guy a new lease of life, Wong adopted Frosty and began searching for equipment that would allow him to move freely again.
"I was looking around for a dog wheelchair on the net, I found that they were all expensive and cost more than RM2,000. Therefore I decided to build it myself," he shared with SAYS.
And the rest is history.
Since then, the couple has made more than 150 wheelchairs for paraplegic dogs, dogs with amputated legs, and old dogs that are too weak to walk.
He uses lightweight materials such as PVC pipes for the frame, cloth for the harness, and foam or plastic for wheels.
Each wheelchair is custom-made to the dog's needs and can cost anything between RM250 and RM450 depending on the size and type
There are two types of wheelchairs: two-wheel or four-wheel.
Unlike human wheelchairs, "All the components are fixed and not foldable in order to provide a more rigid and longer wheelchair life-span," he shared.
Before making it, Wong will usually do a trial run with the dog to check its condition
"I will seek for the owner's advice to do a trial run with a towel, supporting the abdomen and seeing if the dog will or will not walk," he said.
Wong also shared that each dog's ability to adapt to the wheelchair "depends on the severity of its condition and how long it has not been standing or walking".
"Some can immediately adapt to the wheelchair on the spot," he explained.
Here's a cute clip of Frosty running full-speed with his wheelchair:
And it isn't just limited to dogs, cats and rabbits have also benefited from their customised wheelchairs
To find out more or to order a pet wheelchair, visit Dog Wheelchair Malaysia's Facebook page here.
