One Man's Goal to Help his Dog
By: Andrew Barra WMBD/WYZZ-TV
Updated: January 12, 2013
PEORIA COUNTY- They say dog is a man's best friend.
And many people do whatever they can to make sure their dog can live the life they deserve.
That include Shawn Meeks.
As a cop, Meeks has spent a good amount of time with K-9 dogs; enough that when they retire, he would take them in, including one German Shepard.
"After we had been over here for a few years, he ended up passing away," said Shawn. He was about twelve years old when he passed away. We let a little bit of time go by, and we wound up getting Aero as a pup."
Aero - also a German Shepard - is now nine.
Still full of energy - until the Meeks noticed something off.
Shawn said, "We noticed that his walk was getting kind of funny. Talking to the vet - we found it was a de-generative spine - there's nothing that could really be done with it."
The condition leaves Aero essentially paralyzed in his hind legs.
"We saw him struggling," said Shawn's wife, Gina. " Me and the girls went to him saying 'We need to make a cart.'."
"I did get online and looked at sites that they had on dog-type wheelchairs," Shawn added. "If you look online to get them, they were upwards of a thousand dollars, and it didn't look like a complicated procedure to make it."
So Meeks decided to make one himself.
"I did welding for years and years as a job before I became a police officer," he said. "I bought the pipe. I had a welder and a shop. I just fabricated it together."
Now that Aero has the wheelchair - he's a whole new dog.
"It was like a whole new world for him," Gina said. "He's up on his feet. he's able to go out in the yard that he couldn't be in unless we take him."
"His whole demeanor kind of changes," Shawn said. "He gets a lot more energetic and he feels like the bad dog he used to be."
"He went from being depressed state and down all the time until we put the cart on him, and he has a whole new confidence," Gina said. "We just wanted himto be a dog again."
It is just something you have to do, for your best friend.
The Meeks say it took only about two days to make the wheelchair.
And many people do whatever they can to make sure their dog can live the life they deserve.
That include Shawn Meeks.
As a cop, Meeks has spent a good amount of time with K-9 dogs; enough that when they retire, he would take them in, including one German Shepard.
"After we had been over here for a few years, he ended up passing away," said Shawn. He was about twelve years old when he passed away. We let a little bit of time go by, and we wound up getting Aero as a pup."
Aero - also a German Shepard - is now nine.
Still full of energy - until the Meeks noticed something off.
Shawn said, "We noticed that his walk was getting kind of funny. Talking to the vet - we found it was a de-generative spine - there's nothing that could really be done with it."
The condition leaves Aero essentially paralyzed in his hind legs.
"We saw him struggling," said Shawn's wife, Gina. " Me and the girls went to him saying 'We need to make a cart.'."
"I did get online and looked at sites that they had on dog-type wheelchairs," Shawn added. "If you look online to get them, they were upwards of a thousand dollars, and it didn't look like a complicated procedure to make it."
So Meeks decided to make one himself.
"I did welding for years and years as a job before I became a police officer," he said. "I bought the pipe. I had a welder and a shop. I just fabricated it together."
Now that Aero has the wheelchair - he's a whole new dog.
"It was like a whole new world for him," Gina said. "He's up on his feet. he's able to go out in the yard that he couldn't be in unless we take him."
"His whole demeanor kind of changes," Shawn said. "He gets a lot more energetic and he feels like the bad dog he used to be."
"He went from being depressed state and down all the time until we put the cart on him, and he has a whole new confidence," Gina said. "We just wanted himto be a dog again."
It is just something you have to do, for your best friend.
The Meeks say it took only about two days to make the wheelchair.
