Preparation is critical, and we all have our moments of oversight. Even I, being detail-orientated and organized, have been caught off guard. Doing so is particularly crucial while owning giant breeds, as their sheer mass and size can pose significant challenges in times of crisis.
The loss of a giant breed dog is a profoundly emotional experience, as we recently lost our beloved Wolfhound, Kellyanne, several weeks ago at 10 years of age. Then, unexpectedly, we lost her brother, our dearest stallion wolfhound, SBIS Ballyhara Ki, two weeks later. A towering male, standing approximately 36 inches at the shoulder and during the prime of his life, was 175 lbs.
How do you solve the dilemma of moving an injured, sick, or dying giant breed dog when you are alone? There are various animal stretchers and options on the Internet and Amazon. But most are well-suited for average-sized dogs and not giants. I researched as many options as possible and settled on a particular stretcher I could use by myself.
Some giant breeder owners use the black two-wheel animal stretcher from Amazon, which is 45 inches long and great for medium to large breeds. I decided against this option as a long-backed giant breed is much more elongated than 45 inches, and you must lift the stretcher up only on one end to haul the dog. I was concerned about stuffing an injured or sick IW into this small space and then having them slide down, despite the webbed restraints, and bumping or dragging along the ground when hauling this stretcher. In my experience, the mesh barrier could not possibly hold the weight of a wolfhound whose body is sliding from gravity as the stretcher is tipped up to move.
I chose a medical stretcher, which is an excellent alternative. Pricer than the typical animal stretcher, this is a human-size stretcher. The criteria were simple. I needed a long stretcher that my Wolfhounds could lie on (this one is 72 inches long) that was low to the ground so that I alone would be able to drag a massive wolfhound onto it one section at a time, such as the hindquarters then the front-end and head and so forth. The other criteria were that it had 4 wheels for motion and a handle and would be narrow enough to fit through a typical doorway. The dimensions of this medical stretcher are 72.8 inches long, 19.6 inches wide, and 7.8 inches high. It has thickened Oxford cloth that can carry up to 350 pounds, has two web belt restraints, and is foldable.
As seen here, the Amazon animal stretcher is 45" long by 22 inches wide and 6 inches high. It has only 2 wheels, and the animal must be tipped up to move it. A model made with 4 wheels was previously available. Still, it has been out of stock, and there have not been any updates on when it will be available again.
Unfortunately, and heartbreakingly, we had to use our new stretcher shortly after receiving it. As I mentioned, we lost our beautiful hound and had to transport Ki from the backyard to the vehicle. Though my husband was here to assist, after using the medical stretcher, I was comfortable knowing that I would have the ability to at least move my injured, sick, or dying hound by myself to get them to the Emergency Clinic. Getting them to the vehicle safely without causing further harm to them is paramount.
Getting them into our van is another issue. We have always used a telescoping dog ramp with side rails for the hounds' access to our vehicles. Our new stretcher can fit on our wide dog ramp, but it is a tight fit, as the dog ramp is 20 inches wide with side rails. Our ramp telescopes up to 82 inches and can hold 300 pounds. Still, I would move the van so its rear access doors are adjacent to higher ground to minimize the slope to a comfortable 25 to 30-degree incline and then haul the stretcher up the dog ramp. Even better, in the future, after we get done with our construction here, as we are going to be building a new house and dog lounge, I will construct a permanent, gradually sloped earthen ramp for such emergencies where I find myself alone having to move an injured or very ill wolfhound.
If you need to purchase a dog ramp, the one below is an acceptable choice. I'm glad to share my experience with everyone.
