Wizard of Paws saves animals one prosthetic at a time

• “Wizard of Paws” star Derrick Campana is a pioneer in animal prosthetics and orthotics.
• He owns Bionic Pets and Animal Ortho Care, a pet fitter for custom-made mobility devices for animals of all kinds and sizes.
• Currently, his thriving business caters to many animals locally and internationally.

Derrick Campana is not your ordinary animal lover — in fact, he is so much more than that.

A star of BYUtv’s “Wizard of Paws,” Derrick is a pioneer in animal prosthetics and orthotics, creating artificial limbs and braces for animals who have permanently lost their sense of mobility. In short, Derrick is a modern-day hero who gives animals a second shot at life.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bionic Pets (@bionicpets)

In 2005, Derrick founded the “Bionic Pets and Animal Ortho Care,” a pet fitter for custom-made mobility devices for animals of all kinds and sizes — from dogs, cats, eagles, tortoises, cows, foxes, camels, and goats, to even a six-ton African elephant!

Asked why he is into such a unique yet noble line of work, Derrick would answer that it all boils down to making these helpless animals happy and complete.

“It’s about making families whole again,” Derrick shared. “I get to build these prosthetics at their houses. I get to experience the joy on the animals’ faces and [those] families’ faces as they walk again.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Bionic Pets (@bionicpets)

His home in Sterling, Virginia serves as his quarters in crafting cast molds, usually done through hand-sculpts. He finishes the devices with vacuum-formed plastic and other materials.

Derrick does not just cater locally, but also internationally, shipping casting kits all over the world. He hopes to expand his reach using state-of-the-art yet cost-effective 3D printing technology. After all, animals need help in many parts of the world.

“It’s always interesting, never boring and I’m constantly learning,” Derrick said. “Being able to combine [my] passion for building with helping animals is just an awesome thing. I’ve created my own industry here, so it’s kinda living the dream.”

With such an innovative spirit, Derrick has been constantly improving his craft to achieve better, and life-saving outcomes — sans surgery and post-surgical downtime. The reward he gets is always almost priceless: animals wagging their tails in utter happiness!

“Seeing dogs wag their tails; their eyes kind of sparkle again, that moment when they haven’t walked in the last couple of years or maybe they’ve never walked before in their lives… You see them just run and get up and those are the moments that I kind of live for, and that’s why I do what I do,” he shared.

Source: Good News Network