Humans are not the only ones who can have disabilities. Sometimes even animals have them. Such is the case of Merlin. Merlin is a duck, and this particular duck was born with a defect at its left leg. And because of that defect, Merlin was not able to walk, or waddle, around very well.
Last year he was adopted by the Goats of Anarchy Sanctuary, a rescue group in Annandale, New Jersey. Volunteers there quickly discovered Merlin’s disability. So they got in touch with another group, called Walkin’ Pets. This group is known to create devices to help animals with mobility issues.
When workers there found out about Merlin, they wanted to help. And they did. This was a new concept to come up with a wheelchair for a duck but they were able to create one. And Merlin was fitted for it. And soon, Merlin the duck, with the aid of his brand new wheelchair, began waddling around all over the place.
Walkin’ Pets Founder Mark Robinson said he was thrilled that his group could come up with a device to help out Merlin. It was the first time they had ever created such a thing for a duck.
Walkin’ Pets social media coordinator Mikayla Feehan posted about Merlin, saying: “We took a road trip to New Jersey earlier this month to visit Goats of Anarchy, who rescue disabled animals. Merlin was born with an injured leg and they reached out to us to fit him with a wheelchair. We have never made one for a duck so one of our engineers adjusted a mini quad wheelchair just for him. Watching him take his first steps was really cool. Once he was all rigged up, it was truly amazing. It’s not every day you get to see animals take their first steps. The wheelchair can go into water we would just recommend avoiding salt water to keep the wheelchair in tip top shape.”
Walkin’ Pets first opened in 2001, and since that time, the group has been able to provide more than 50,000 mobility aids for animals throughout the world.
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