Robotics team makes wheelchair for puppy without front legs

ALEXANDRIA, La. (KALB) - A high school robotics team finished their first wheelchair prototype for a small puppy without her two front legs.

Kanga-Roo, called Roo for short, lost her front two legs at birth. She was brought to the Heart of Louisiana Humane Society last year.

Roo is now slowly learning how to move with her first wheelchair prototype, courtesy of the Steel Eagles Robotics team at Holy Savior Menard Central High School.

“That is one of our favorite things about robotics, being able to go out into the community and do things that are actually helpful to the community, things that people might not think that robotics is involved with,” said Tonya Shepard, the Steel Eagles Robotics coach and teacher at Menard.

In October, the Steel Eagles were tasked with building a wheelchair for Roo. Now, Roo’s new wheels are helping to improve her quality of life.

“Seeing the kids, their brains work and trying to figure things out and learning to see live things move and adjust and kind of grow and go through that process,” said Kristy Royall, vice president of the Heart of Louisiana Humane Society.

The team created its first wheelchair prototype using a 3D printer, designed specifically to help Roo go mobile. They will continue creating new ones as Roo grows.

“It’s kind of an evolving process until Roo reaches her full size,” Shepard said. “We’re going to continue to adjust and alter and get it to be exactly what she needs it to be. For such a small dog, she’s grown over the last six weeks that we’ve been working with her. So, it’s a lot of fun to see.”

Royall says Roo is getting more comfortable in the wheelchair and starting to become “a lot more mobile.”

“She was a little bit scared at first. We had a few little tip-overs, made some adjustments, but it’s literally changed her life and the way that she’s able to move, become mobile, not worrying about getting sores or breakdowns from constantly being on the ground,” she said.

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