www.3ders.org

Mar 21, 2016 | By Tess

UK based veterinarian surgeon, Noel Fitzpatrick, star of the Channel 4 reality television series The Supervet, has made a significant statement regarding the well beings of people’s pets. The pioneering vet, who is known for using such technologies as 3D printing to help give quality of life back to people’s furry friends, has said that with all the technologies available to veterinary offices now, the question of saving a pet’s life has become a moral decision rather than a scientific one.

Fitzpatrick, who has successfully completed some truly amazing veterinarian surgeries on his show, including giving Oscar the cat two bionic back legs, earning him a Guinness World Record, explains that choosing whether to put your pet through surgery and treatments should depend solely on what will be beneficial to the animal itself.

He says in an interview, “The bottom line now is that anything is possible, if you have a blood and nerve supply. That means that we now have a line in the sand: not what is "possible" but what is "right". In the past it was just the case of if it wasn't possible, you'd move to euthanasia.”

When deciding how or if to treat your ailing pet, the ‘Supervet’ also asks pet owners to keep in mind how much of our own well-being and scientific advancements have depended on the lives of animals, who are used for drug testing and other experiments. “They’ve given us all their lives for research,” explains Fitzpatrick. “Quite simply it’s time to give something back.” In that sense, the veterinarian believes wholeheartedly that if we have the technology to help a pet have a better life, we owe it to them to do so.

The most recent season of The Supervet, which premiered last month on the UK’s Channel 4, has already shown some of the amazing things the innovative veterinarian surgeon is capable of doing with 3D printing technologies. For instance, Fitzpatrick helped a large Great Dane who suffered from a abnormal neck bone that was squeezing his spinal cord by 3D printing vertebrae implants to alleviate the pressure on his spinal cord. The vet also helped a three-legged cat with severe arthritis to walk again with the help of a bespoke hip implant.

With technologies like 3D scanning and 3D printing at his fingertips, Noel Fitzpatrick is dedicated to helping pets as much as he can. Of course, as he points out, sometimes euthanasia is the best course of action, depending on what will be more comfortable for your pet. As 3D printing technologies help advance human healthcare, it is always encouraging to see the technology being used to help animals as well. After all, we should treat the pets that love us unconditionally with as much love and respect as we can.

 

 

Posted in 3D Printing Application

 

 

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