((PKG))  ANIMAL BRACES AND PROSTHETICS   
((Banner:  Bionic Pets)) 
((Reporter/Camera:  Deborah Block))
((Adapted by:  Philip Alexiou)) 
((Map:  Sterling, Virginia))

 ((NATS))
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
I am hand-sculpting each one of these devices from scratch 
using plaster and building with plastics and foams and it's, 
it's an art every step of the way.  
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
Veterinary orthotics and prosthetics aren’t an exact 
science.  It’s really more of an art.  I was working in the 
human prosthetic industry for a couple of years and one day, 
a veterinarian brought her dog named Charles to my human 
facility.  And luckily my boss quit that day and a veterinarian 
was sitting with her dog, a black lab named Charles, for 
about three hours and I said, you know, I've never helped 
the dog before.  And I gave it a try and it worked.  And I had 
such fulfillment and gratitude from not only the veterinarian  
but the dog, that I realized this is the fulfillment I always want 
from each patient.  And I started animal orthocare back in 
2005.   
((NATS)) 
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
We do a lot more braces than prosthetics.  It's a lot more 
common for an animal to injure an ACL like we do.  So, an 
ACL is just like what we have in our knee and they, it's called 
a CCL for dogs.  They tweak their knee.  It's a ligament 
rupture.  So, we put a knee brace on the leg to stabilize it 
and then eventually the ligament will scar over and they don't 
need surgery at all.  So, we're actually saving people lots of 
money.  Surgeries cost between three and five thousand 
dollars.  A lot of times, vets won't tell you that we can 
stabilize with a knee brace and you can avoid surgery 
altogether.  So, we're saving you a few thousand dollars with 
this device here.  That's the gold mine.   
((NATS)) 
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
Have to do it a certain way.  Since there's only about 10 of 
us in the world that do veterinary orthotics and prosthetics 
full time, not a lot of people are in close proximity to these 
facilities.  So, we do allow caretakers to cast their own pet 
when necessary or we send casting kits to veterinarians 
around the globe to cast the patient and ship that cast to 
us.   
((NATS)) 
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets))  
We were able to make one of the first leg braces for a camel 
in the world.  So, I helped a couple of elephants in Thailand 
about four years ago, who lost their legs from 
landmines.  And from there, I just kind of overnight became 
the Elephant Man.  And so, whenever an elephant, no matter 
where it is around the world, has an injury, I seem to get 
called upon.   
((Courtesy:  Derrick Camana)) 
((NATS)) 
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets))  
So, I helped a couple of elephants in Thailand about four 
years ago, who lost their legs from landmines.  And from 
there, I just kind of overnight became the Elephant Man.  
And so, whenever an elephant, no matter where it is around 
the world, has an injury, I seem to get called upon.  So Jabu, 
the African elephant from Botswana, he actually fell into a 
termite hole and he twisted his wrist really bad.  So, I was 
able to make a brace to stabilize the leg so he wouldn't get 
attacked and so he could get around because, you know, if 
an elephant can’t get around, then he can’t live.  
Every day I get kind of a new request and a new challenge 
and I like that.  But how did I get there?  I don't really know.  I 
think people just kind of saw something and then they 
realized that I could do it and they reached out. 
((Courtesy:  Derrick Camana)) 
((NATS)) 
((Customer))  
I just want him to live the last few years of his life, you know, 
the best he can.  
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
It still gives me, you know, goose bumps where you fit a dog 
and he is starting to regain his mobility.  
((NATS)) 
((Courtesy:  Derrick Camana)) 
((Derrick Camana, Founder, Bionic Pets)) 
That joy you see, that smile, that sparkle, that wagging of 
their tail.  I get such a joy out of helping animals. 
((NATS))