Hi Tripawd parents,

I thought I would take a quick moment to share Hero's story with you. My fiance and I were looking to adopt a dog from the local SPCA and saw his picture online. It was clearly love at first sight - one ear flopped over, big smile, huge tongue hanging out the side of his mouth - who wouldn't find him adorable? It said he was an amputee from a possible hit by car, but we thought to check him out anyway and keep an open mind.

To be honest, I thought long and hard before going over there. The few family members I spoke to warned me about "all the extra medical issues" I would have to deal with (whatever that means... and anyway, what experience did they have with an amputee dog?!) and I was worried he would be dragging his back. Well, when we got there and the tech let him out, you would have thought she shot a bullet from a  cannon. He couldn't really walk or run as someone normally imagines, but he kind of scooted around in between bounding from place to place.

The tech informed us he had been returned once before, that the family who adopted him already had a dog and that dog was aggressive to him because of his missing leg. This has caused separation anxiety, which has been a slow road of progress, but he is doing better with it. We were determined to do physical therapy with him and work on his walking posture and weight distribution. We couldn't afford expensive water treadmill treatments, but we do work with him every day.

I believe it is paying off, becuase he now stands straight (relatively speaking) and when I take him jogging, people don't notice right away that he is missing a leg. As for extra medical issues, we know he will have back problems down the road and will deal with that when we have to; for now, Hero is just like any other hyper, rambunctious dog and loves to play catch, chase everything, and go jogging with me. We give him joint supplements and do strength and balance training for his back leg in the form of games daily, but that's it for "extras."

The only issue I have is how people perceive him; when I take him running, people will say things like what a good person I am for adopting him. It's almost a back handed compliment; I know they are trying to be nice and are curious. But would these same people say the same thing to the parent of a child who lost a leg?

I don't think adopting Hero is a testament to my character. He isn't handicapped. He's strong and stubborn, like the rest of his family. I try to smile and explain this to people who see him, that he is just missing his spare tire. That a dog doesn't have to be euthanized if they get hit by a car or become sick and need to have surgery. Hopefully Hero can become an ambassador for Tripawds in my area and spread the word.