Wylie, a 3-legged sheep who lost one of his limbs to a predator a few months ago now wheels about the Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation sanctuary in Kendalia in his custom built wheelchair.

Wylie was a tiny lamb when he first arrived at Wildlife Rescue. After several months of care by our veterinary staff, he grew into a robust and healthy sheep whose three legs were unable to support his 80 pounds of weight and he became increasingly immobile. After extensive research a solution was found to help Wylie get back on his feet.

Even though Wylie was deemed by specialists as having little chance of recuperation, the WRR veterinary staff made casts of Wylie’s front legs. The casts were sent to an equine specialist in New York, who used the casts as models to frame braces that would stabilize his front legs. Without a mechanism to help Wylie move, the braces hold little value, so we had a wheelchair custom made for the disabled sheep. Wylie is now able to roam and play to his heart’s content with his best friend, Puddin, a goat who also lives with a physical disability.

For over thirty years now, Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation (WRR) has been bringing hope to many species of both native and non-native animals. Wildlife Rescue’s 200 acre sanctuary is also home to hundreds of animals commonly found on farms. Wylie is just one of those animals. Although some might wonder at going to this much trouble for a single sheep, at WRR we believe that all lives are special and deserve respect and assistance as needed. We don’t turn our backs on any animal or person, and do our utmost to find them the help that can make a big difference in their lives.

Founded in 1977 by Lynn Cuny, Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation is located on 200 acres in Kendalia, Texas outside of San Antonio and Austin. Wildlife Rescue is widely recognized as a superior rehabilitation and sanctuary facility and is accredited by The Global Federation of Sanctuaries (GFAS). In the over 30 years of its existence, well over 100,000 animals have been brought to WRR, from surrounding areas as well as from around the country; the majority of these were rehabilitated and released. Those who cannot be released with a reasonable chance for survival in the wild, but who would have a good quality of life in captivity, are given permanent sanctuary. WRR also provides a permanent home for a variety of birds and mammals who have been the victims of the exotic pet trade, rescued from roadside zoos, or used in research labs and therefore cannot be returned to their natural habitats.