Here's How a Physical Therapist Helped This Tiny Paralyzed Puppy
Goldie — a pup in Fort Lauderdale, Florida — hasn’t known much of life yet, but much of what she knew in her earliest days was misery.
Starved. Neglected. Born with a spine deformity, unable to walk and left with a mangled tail thanks to a botched dock attempt. Goldie was a mess when she came to Good Karma Pet Rescue. Thankfully, from that point on, she has known nothing but love and care.
April Lowe, a volunteer with the rescue, has been caring for Goldie and posting updates for her ever-growing following on Facebook.
“Went to the vet today and all tests came back negative,” Lowe posted on Nov. 14. “She’s on antibiotics for her eyes, her rash and her little nub (they were able to remove her partially hanging tail).”
“We are so grateful to everyone who donated to her medical care. We are still awaiting her X-ray results but so far everything is looking really good!”
Goldie started to eat well. She gained weight. Slowly but surely, she was regaining strength — but she still wasn’t able to walk well.
More tests later, the doctor determined that the puppy didn’t have swimmers syndrome, but rather her inability to walk was due to the harsh conditions she had been kept in.
“I spoke with the vet this evening, he’s not so sure she has swimmers syndrome, rather he believes she was kept in a very small cage and starved (and yes her tail was the result of a botched docking),” Lowe said in an update on Nov. 15. “It’s sickening to think about BUT the take away here is that with our exercise and good nutrition she will be able to use her back legs.”
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And Lowe had the connections to help with that. Her brother and sister-in-law built a special box that would teach Goldie to walk by giving her “bumpers” to corral and guide her little legs.
Then an unorthodox twist: Goldie needed extensive physical therapy, so they went to a physical therapist — a human physical therapist. Lowe herself uses Athletix Rehab and Recovery’s services, so they met with Kyle Krupa, who took on the pup’s case.
“Goldie is suffering from a tremendous loss of bone mineral density, muscle atrophy, and poor motor control of her hind legs,” Krupa said, according to WTSP-TV.
“Once her hind legs are strong enough we can start encouraging her to walk more frequently with proper form, starting with a narrow box/tunnel, then having her observe and play with other dogs that she can mirror.”
“My amazing physical therapist, Kyle Krupa from Athletix Rehab and Recovery, worked with Goldie today,” Lowe posted on Nov. 21. “He sent me home with exercises to do with her and we will follow up next week. So grateful to him for donating his time to help this miracle baby get as strong as she possibly can.”
Goldie has been making strides in her recovery and has started walking more and better, thanks to the dedication of her team.
Based on the comments the updates have received, Goldie will have no problem finding a forever home once she’s healthy and fully vetted. Thanks to people like Lowe and Krupa, she’ll get that chance.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
