Making Your Own Animal Wheelchair

In some cases, purchasing a professionally made wheelchair for your animal can be cost prohibitive. These carts can cost between $300 and $500, a price that some families can't afford. Fortunately, there are ways to create your own cart or animal wheelchair for your dog, cat or small animal. Many websites on the Internet offer instructions and schematics to build your own cart, and the materials required to make these wheelchairs can be found around your home or at hardware stores. A good way to start out is by measuring your animal, and then deciding what strength of materials you will need to make a good cart (ie, copper piping, tubing, or aluminum frame); you'll also need to devise a harness/support for the back end of the animal (one suggestion is to use a back brace made for humans), and figure out what sort of wheels you'll need. With a little bit of ingenuity, a cart can be custom built for the cost of a few inexpensive parts.

Be Prepared With A Wheelchair Repair Kit

Whether you’re planning on traveling for an extended period of time or being away from home for a few days, it pays to be prepared. A wise idea for when you’re leaving the comforts of home, is to take a wheelchair repair kit with you. A wheelchair repair kit is a simple solution you can create yourself with items around the house or an easy purchase from the local store. Pack a tire-changing kit, a screwdriver, an adjustable wrench and a pair of pliers. Those items are all you need, in case you have problems with your wheels, need to change a tire, or want to clean out your casters.

Finding Used Wheelchair Vans

Buying used wheelchair vans rather than purchasing new equipment can save you a tremendous amount of money. The trick is to keep an eye out for the model of wheelchair van that would suit your needs. One place you can look for used wheelchair vans is with your local MS Society chapter. You’ll find new listings of everything from a used mobility scooter to different types of used wheelchair adaptive vehicles on their newsletters and Web pages. The MS Society also recommends you try other possibilities to find your used wheelchair van, such as the classified sections for disability magazines.

National Wheelchair Basketball Association

If you’re really serious about playing or watching wheelchair basketball, check out the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA). They have over 185 basketball teams for men, women, colleges, and children. They have three men’s divisions and three juniors divisions, so there is a team that exists for every skill level. In addition to competing within the United States, members of the NWBA compete in wheelchair basketball internationally. From the Paralympic Games to the Pan American Games, the NWBA selects and trains members to play wheelchair basketball around the globe.

Advantages Of The Manual Wheelchair

If you’re considering a manual wheelchair, you’ll want to know what the advantages of getting one are. Here’s our list of what’s good about the manual wheelchair:

• A manual wheelchair is lightweight and with the use of alloy material, getting lighter with the advancement of technology.
• Your purchase costs and maintenance costs will be lower with a manual wheelchair than with a power wheelchair.
• A manual wheelchair is more compact and quieter because you’re not dealing with a motor and its associated noise.
• For slight movements, you’ll do better with a manual wheelchair than with most power wheelchair models.

Advantages of The Power Wheelchair

Some wheelchair users may prefer or need a power wheelchair. There are several advantages to owning a power wheelchair for those who need or want a little extra mobility assistance.

• You can conserve your physical energy for other activities when you use a power wheelchair.
• Going up hill is much easier and requires minimal exertion on your part with a power wheelchair.
• Wheelchair users who decide to go with a power version will find carrying groceries and other items easier by having at least one free arm.
• You don’t require any mobility assistance with a power wheelchair that you might if you had a manual one. For instance, when you travel long distances or steep inclines, the power wheelchair handles the movement for you.
  

Deciding On Battery Power

Once you’ve figured out what type of battery you should get – gel cell or wet cell – you need to figure out the battery power you need. Battery power is rated in amp hours and comes in three sizes. If you want a more powerful battery, you’ll get one with a higher number of amp hours. Wet cell batteries tend to have amp hour ratings ten percent higher than that of gel cell batteries.

The three sizes of battery power are group 22, 24, and 27. A group 22 battery is the standard size. A group 24 battery is suited for heavier high performance chairs. The most power goes to the group 27 battery which you might use for extended travel distances and frequent use over sloped terrain.

Benefits of Suitcase Wheelchair Ramps

Suitcase wheelchair ramps give an advantage to the wheelchair user for a number of reasons. If you’re considering adding suitcase wheelchair ramps to help you get around, take a look at our list of benefits this mobility device will give you:

• Suitcase wheelchair ramps come in a variety of lengths to meet your needs.

• Suitcase wheelchair ramps can be used to access curbs, landings, stairs, and mini-vans which would otherwise be difficult or impossible.

• You’ll find most products will be more than sufficient to support heavy weights of several hundreds of pounds.

• This mobility device is portable, foldable, and carryable.

• Suitcase wheelchair ramps can be used indoors or outdoors.

Cushions: Try Before You Buy

"Shop...and...compare online...before...you buy!" No, that isn't you with sore muscles or a gotta-go complex. That's William Shatner in the Priceline commercials.

While Captain Kirk, aka Denny Crane, aka Mr. Priceline, doesn't show any signs of needing a wheelchair, he's a try-before-you-buy kind of guy. You can't try before you buy with airlines, but you can with wheel chair cushions.

You can't send back wheelchair cushions you bought online--at least not if you've had them for a year! But you can go down to your local mobility aids store or consult your doctor. Ask to try out several before picking wheelchair cushions. Try a cooling wheelchair cushion or a solid air one with a little bounce. Check the way it fastens to your wheelchair. Is it large enough? If you have an Enterprise "captain's chair" in your electric wheelchair, does the cushion help you or make you leap out of your chair as if the ship's being attacked by Klingons?

As another "Star Trek" star (who pretended to replace his captain in the Priceline ads), would say, it's only logical to try before you buy. Now, if you could just try out that Hawaiian vacation. Oh well. Ahead...Warp Nine...engage!

Electric Scooters or Electric Wheelchairs

Your child frets, "I don't want to use electric wheelchairs! I'd like a scooter—they're cooler and more stylin'." Or if you need the electric wheel chair, you think the same thing. Why? Scooters such as the Buggy or the Pioneer lightweight models just seem cooler for you.

Unfortunately, your kids just have a choice of recreational scooters and stander power wheel chairs that look interesting if not particularly scooter-like. You, on the other hand, can choose a wide variety of scooters, assuming you don't need to remain in a wheelchair all the time. Remember, electric wheelchairs add mobility if you're bed-bound or wheelchair-bound and can't operate a manual chair. If you need to be in a wheelchair much of the time, a scooter isn't your best bet.

It's hard to say no to your kids. It's even harder to say no to yourself. But you have to if you don't need and can't afford an electric wheel chair with all the bells and whistles—and do you need them anyway? You just need a powerful transport. Fortunately, electric wheelchairs come in affordable, sophisticated styles like the Jazzy 1103 Ultra or the Merits MP3F High-Performance Power Base with front wheel drive. Select an electric wheel chair with zip and style that help you to feel zippy and stylish too.