Prosthetics for Injured Animals
Historically, artificial devices for wildlife have been expensive and very time-consuming to produce. 3D printing is changing that calculus by making it easier to design and build better-fitting prosthetics.
ByLaurel Neme
When caregivers at the Weltvogelpark Walsrode bird park in Germany returned to the aviary one morning, they were heartsick to discover that a secretary bird they called Söckchen, or “Little Sock,” had broken her leg inside her enclosure. They guessed that something must have scared her and made her jump, causing a severe break.
Secretary birds (Sagittarius serpentarius) need their legs. Found in Africa’s savannas, they are large, mostly terrestrial birds; their strong, sturdy legs are vital not only for walking but for capturing snakes and other prey. Often, they hunt by stomping the ground to flush out animals, then run them down and strike with their beak or feet to stun or kill them. In the wild, the loss of a leg would be a death sentence. And in captivity it was a severe debilitation. With her leg severed, Söckchen became depressed, was not eating well, and rarely walked about.