A Tennessee couple was left with a difficult decision after their dog was hit by a car. Surgery was expensive and they thought their options were limited, until they learned about a high-tech solution normally only available to humans -- a prosthetic leg. Sam and Paula Swift watched in horror as their 9-year-old Siberian husky, Polo, was run over in their driveway.
There were three options for Polo: amputate the leg, commit to multiple surgeries or a prosthetic paw. "It's not something that's been really published in veterinary literature," veterinarian Trey Calfee said. "There's not a lot of research that exists on it that I'm aware of. So it was really the owner's directive. Can we do this with my dog. And the answer is generally always yes. The question is, is it financially a viable option?"
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Polo's owners decided on the prosthetic. For several months, he will use a temporary prosthetic while veterinarians study it for wear and tear and recast Polo for a perfect fit. The cost is $995 - about a third of the cost of the surgery.
"It was more a cost versus quality of life and for the price of the prosthetic. It was not even really a question," Sam Swift said. Polo uses his prosthetic leg like a real paw. His owners say he likes to get up and walk like he used to and is back to his husky ways - quick to curl up in a pile of snow.
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