Wheelchair Dog Walking Done Right

Taking your pooch anywhere – I don’t care if it’s out on the town, deep into the woods, for a ride in your car or van, heck – just taking them outside to go to the bathroom – doing any of these tasks takes some serious logistics when you use a wheelchair. And not every solution has been figured out yet.

From showing how to take your dog at a brisk speed in a powerchair to maneuvering unstable curb-cuts with a pooch tied to your wheelchair frame, we’ve found some awesome videos showing wheelchair dog walking no matter your limitations. Check out our four favorites below!

Our first video is a brainstorming video showing how the traditional retractable dog leash that has the plastic encasement isn’t ideal if you have to push yourself in a manual chair. Gripping the leash as firmly as you need to in order for wheelchair dog walking to be safe, all while pushing in your usual manner simply put – is not easy – as Deb Davis of PushLiving.com shows, a paraplegic from FL with an adorable little pooch.

Her video shows the common problems manual chair users run into when wheelchair dog walking, plus she includes a call for better ideas that may alleviate some of these hiccups. Watch Deb’s video

Our second video is short and sweet – a man in a powerchair taking his Huskie out for a run in his Bounder powerchair, one of the quickest powerchairs out available. It’s awesome seeing a powerchair user do wheelchair dog walking with a dog out for such a hardcore run. It’s hard to tell too, but it looks like the dog is tethered to the bottom of his seat. Watch to see for yourself

The third video we uncovered comes direct from Australia, and it shows an active paraplegic navigating his suburban neighborhood with his Jack Russell Terrier in tow, also tied to his wheelchair frame. If you’ve ever wondered how in the heck you can do other things, like pop a curb, go up a steep curb-cut, all while wheelchair dog walking and not running them over, then this is the video to watch. Check out his tips

And out last video shows a vent-dependent quad with no arm movement wheelchair dog walking with his two little pooches. He has them tethered to his chair on his left side and they follow in kind, knowing that they should follow their master. A lot of people don’t think dogs are smart enough to stay out of the wheels of a wheelchair, but this video definitely proves otherwise. Watch

These videos prove above all however that any kind of wheelchair-user can pull off wheelchair dog walking, and being that dogs are man’s best friend after all, all the extra work is definitely worth it. Dogs without question can be one of the greatest joys in life, disability present or no.

How do you make wheelchair dog walking easier?

Watch the videos!

– Deb from Push Living showing how tricky it can be wheelchair dog walking from a manual wc

– Quad in a powerchair zooming fast to give his Huskie a workout

– Guy in a manual wc showing how to maneuver curb cuts/crossing streets with a dog leashed to him

– C1 quad wheelchair dog walking two dogs