3D printing gives one dog the ability to run for the first time

Another day, another animal given a new lease on life thanks to 3D printing. While we’ve previously seen TurboRoo the cute Chihuahua receive a wheelchair-like apparatus and a duck dubbed Quack Quack be fitted with braces, this time is a husky mix named Derby who had been born with deformed legs.

With the help of the 3DSystems crew and a team of orthopedic experts, Derby was given a pair of modified front legs — which feature two blade-like attachments — that now allow the dog who was once barely able to get around, run swiftly down sidewalks as well as play fetch in the yard.

It all started when Derby’s owners had placed him into a foster home by The Peace And Paws Rescue, not long before being picked up by 3DSystems employee, Tara Anderson. While she first decided to get Derby a cart, which seemed to work pretty well, she felt as though it could not provide Derby with the full motion of running. So, a pair of designers and animal orthotist Derrick Campana came together to scan Derby’s legs and proceed to make the dog’s tailored cradles and blades, which actually resemble a pair of those “jumping shoes” you had as a kid.

Right in the peak of the holiday season, it’s truly wonderful to see a dog so joyful — all thanks to 3D printing technology. The real story here is that rapid prototyping is proving to an ideal solution for a number of orthopedic and medical problems, both for man and our four-legged friends. Derby is the perfect example.

You can watch Derby in action below. (However, consider yourself warned, you may want to 3D print some tissues afterwards!)