Kenzie was found in July 2016 running loose at Francis Slocum state park. (This is a picture the ranger who found her took) Her front left leg was fractured and already healed incorrectly. He took her to the SPCA of Luzerne County, Wilkes Barre Pa. Our sweet girl was immediately nicknamed, “Kickstand” because that’s how her leg had healed.
I am a Pediatric Home Care Nurse and had met with a family in early July 2016, who had taken in 2 springer spaniels, one of which was a love who happened to have a deformed front leg. His pup momma is an OT and was trying to rehab the leg rather than amputate. I however, happen to be a mom of a now 13 yr old son, Nathan, who had been born with Tibial Hemimelia and had to have his leg amputated at 8 mo of age. Nathan has done wonderfully, and is very active in sports… So I’m was not afraid of amputation. Anyway, it got me thinking about adopting an amputee pup. We already had a 6 yr old Lab/Rottie dog named Cody, and I thought he might like a friend, and Nathan would like to help a pup who had lost a leg too. Nathan jumped at the chance… and our search started.
A day or so after Kenzie was found, the SPCA received an email from a crazy woman named, Becky Holmberg (aka me) specifically looking for an amputee puppy or young dog. They knew they had found “Kickstand’s” home but wanted to wait to tell me until after they knew how her surgery went. In early August, I got to meet our girl.
This is a pic of my sons and Kenzie on the first day we met her. Cody and her got along… kind-of… he wasn’t so sure he wanted to share his people with a spazzy puppy who had no concept of personal space. LOL. Nathan was in heaven though…
And by the start of his school year, the two were getting along a bit better…
More of the story to come… but I have to get to work (Insane documentation right now… gotta play catch up)
—-Becky (btw, my new last name is Kuchinski. I got married on May 26, 2018)
