The 43-year-old Derrick Campana has provided prosthetic arms and legs to nearly 35,000 animals, including dogs, goats, cows, camels, raccoons, and even elephants.
His organization Bionic Pets manufactures artificial limbs that allow disabled animals to walk again. All animals deserve the opportunity to walk and live a happy life. So all the technologies we have should be available to them as well,” says Derrick Campana. He started making artificial animal limbs 18 years ago after a woman came into his workshop where he made artificial arms and legs for humans and said her Labrador Charles needed a prosthetic.
He did not refuse her request even though he had never created artificial limbs for dogs before. His new paw fit Charles perfectly within a week. As a result of this success, Derrick wanted to learn more about how animal prostheses are made. After gaining experience, he began working with veterinarians across the country and soon founded Bionic Pets. The paw models had to be redone several times due to the difficulty of some animals’ prosthetic limbs.
He was determined to become an expert in this field, however, so he didn’t give up. In the end, he succeeded. Bionic Pets offers near-perfect dentures and braces to low-income pet owners. Large animals, such as Thai elephants, are among Derrick’s clients. Derrick warns owners of his tailed clients not to expect miraculous healing after the first day of their prosthetics.
Once the animals master the prosthesis, a miracle will really happen.” Derrick says. Campana is currently developing an accreditation body for animal prostheses, because there are currently too few standards for artificial limbs. There are many people who want to make their own prosthetics for their pets. There is no standard for its development, so they can harm the animal. I don’t want that to happen.” – explained the prosthetics specialist.
