A one-of-a-kind prosthetic is helping a bird named Bunker get a running start on the road to recovery.
The sandhill crane is a step closer to returning to Country Meadows Golf Course in Richmond, where he was struck by a golf ball last March.
The ball fractured the crane’s leg, cutting off its circulation. Bunker’s leg had to be amputated.
“A two-legged bird doesn’t do well with one leg so we tried to figure out how we could help him,” said Dr. Ken MacQuisten, an Abbotsford veterinarian who took Bunker under his wing. “Turns out an orhotic prosthetic was the answer for him.”
MacQuisten first fitted the animal with a wooden dowel after the amputation. He was elated when Bunker successfully took a few steps with the crude prosthetic – and decided to fit him with a leg that was more permanent.
Veterinarians made a mold of the bird’s leg stump and sent it to an organization called OrthoPets in Denver, Colo. The group hadn’t made a prosthetic for a crane before, but was determined to help Bunker.
“We sent it back and they made an outstanding prosthetic,” he said. “He’s learned how to use it very well. You can see that when he takes steps that he takes a full step, and he can pivot really well on the new foot.”
The new plastic leg helps Bunker bear equal amounts of weight on both legs and it has MacQuisten and co. hopeful the bird can be released back into his natural habitat in the near future.
“We’d like to talk with the Country Meadows Golf Course in Richmond and see if they’re interested in having him come back there,” he said.
Even if Bunker continues his speedy recovery, his release date is at least a year away, according to MacQuisten.
