Milce Cankovic Kadijevic walks her dog Bak, who is in a wheelchair, in the park in Belgrade, Serbia, Feb 12, 2015. When Milica's dog Bak crushed a spinal disk two years ago, Belgrade veterinarians told her to euthanize the dog. Then she went to Dragan Dimitrijevic, who made a wheelchair for her dog. [Photo/IC]

Wheelchair helps injured pets walk

Homemade 'wheelchairs', using small wheels, plastic pipes and old belts to help invalid pets walk and run as normal are selling like hot cakes in Serbia and other Balkan countries.

Dragan Dimitrijevic, a computer programmer fromBelgrade, has made around 80 contraptions, all using recycled parts, for injured or disabled dogs and cats in more than three years. The first wheelchair took three days to make but now is just a one-day routine.

Each 'wheelchair' is made in consultation with vets and adapted to fit a particular pet and the nature of its injuries, Dimitrijevic said.

It also helps the animals exercise and prevents additional injuries when they go outside.