An animal lover and volunteer, inspired by her disabled father, has built a makeshift train out of plastic barrels to give daily rides to dogs with disabilities at a shelter outside Türkiye's capital Ankara.
Buket Özgünlü, chairperson of the Associaton of Paws Holding onto Life (Yaşa Pati), attached makeshift dog wagons to an all-terrain vehicle to take dogs out every day. She believes that, like people, dogs need a change of scenery, and if they cannot walk, they will have to ride.
"This is how the idea for the train came up: My father is also paralyzed and disabled. We felt the need to take him out (by car) and make him walk," Özgünlü told Reuters recently.
"Then, I said our kids (the dogs) do not see anything; they must want this too because the ones who are disabled are more traumatized; they feel a different intensity of emotions."
She said the shelter houses 560 dogs rescued from the streets, including 300 suffering physically.
"I can say we took all of them from the arms of death," she said.
Özgünlü and other shelter workers have painted the plastic barrels bright colors and plan to add a tarpaulin to provide shade for the dogs, ensuring a first-class ride.
The volunteer garnered a lot of attention with the makeshift train, and a number of Turkish outlets recently reported on the heartwarming story.
The living space for dogs was created in 2020 by an association established a year earlier by Özgünlü, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported earlier this week.
On the occasion of World Stray Animal Day on April 4, the paralyzed dogs were taken on a train ride close to their shelter.
