Gower Mobility Limited

Mobility Scooters and Dogs

by Shelley Jerrom

M A mobility scooter user with her dog. obility Scooter and Dogs! It’s true no matter how much you think it isn’t, I’m sorry to tell you that your dog really doesn’t care a jot if you don’t have arms or legs! He doesn’t care that you can’t run and that he is walked beside a set of wheels…..he just doesn’t care! He cares about you and having fun – it simply doesn’t matter to him how it’s done.

This is where dogs and mobility scooters are truly a blessing for special folk – they allow so much freedom and the dogs and us are thankful for them.

So what can you do with your dog and a scooter? The short answer would be anything you like, but it’s not quite true there are some restrictions mainly dependent on what type of scooter or wheelchair you have. If you are wanting to go X country hiking with your dog – you will need to get a suitable scooter so amongst other things you don’t get stuck in the mud!

Dog Agility is one sport that many disabled people have a lot of fun with and the dogs are in heaven. It involves the dogs running around a course over differing obstacles with their handler – timed of course! There are tricky parts to overcome, such as venues (a lot do not have toilets that are necessarily friendly! And sometimes the ground, if soaked with the British Weather is tricky.) but as with everything, check it out before you go. Many people use specialized sports wheelchairs and with the mobility scooters the smaller the turning radius on the wheels the easier agility is! For those that have really clever dogs, the ultimate, is to be able to sit in the middle of the ring and direct your dog with your voice – that’s when you realize your dog knows distance control!

Flyball is much like a relay race for dogs! The dogs race over low hurdles to retrieve a tennis ball that is placed in a flyball box and race back again, the next dog then takes over…….it’s fast and furious and highly addictive. This is perhaps the “easiest” sport for those using wheelchair or mobility scooters because you stay at the end of the lane – the dog does the work – you do the yelling!

Puppy! The Kennel Club also run their “Canine Good Citizen Scheme” in the hope of creating well mannered dogs. These progress from Puppy right up to Gold and are aimed at creating obedient dogs and responsible owners. Many local clubs run these so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a class, most are run in village halls or neatly cut grass fields so scooters and wheelchairs should be fine.

Showing if you have a pedigree dog is another activity you may enjoy – ever fancied going to Crufts? This is possible on a scooter but the speed of your scooter needs to be considered – if you are showing a large breed with a long stride you need a scooter that goes fast enough to show off your dog’s wonderful gait.

Traditional Obedience can be achieved if you are careful with heelwork – we don’t want paws under wheels! The exciting new sport coming over from the USA called Rally-O maybe a fun choice with a bit more flexibility?

Dock Jumping (dashnsplash) is a blast for water dogs, but as you usually have to get up steps to the dock you may need a helper with you unless your dog is happy with strangers. The dog runs along the dock and bellyflops dives into the water, a toy can be used but it is not necessary for them to retrieve it as it is the jumping distance that is measured.

Heelwork to music could be a challenge for the creative thinking amongst you – creating a fun dance routine with your dog and your wheels!

There’s a host of sports that are breed specific like field trials, sheepdog trials, gundog tests and bloodhound trials. As well as protection sport Schutzhund. These are usually over rough terrain so a scooter up to that job is a must.

Credit must be given to the great many trainers who go out of their way to accommodate wheelchair and scooter users and their dogs – most rise to the challenge and for that we and our dogs thank them.

The tail (sorry!) end of it is with a little creative thinking and a very good scooter/wheelchair any of these sports are possible, some are trickier on wheels than others but if something really makes your heart sing – go for it because you and the trainers will find a way!

Still unsure what you fancy? Why not go to one of the wonderful dog events and watch the clever canines doing just about everything!

Photos

Thanks to Janet Weller for the scooter and dog photo, and to Ferdi for his image on Flickr (uploaded on creative commons licence).