The relationship between humans and animals started many years ago. One amazing thing is that the history of veterinary care is not as long as the relationship has been in place; it means that animals were lacking some necessary attention from their friends the humans. France was the first country to establish a veterinary school in 1761A.D. Domesticated animals was the first ones to receive special attention including vet care from people. The boundary widened to companion animals like cats and dogs and then to wild animals.
Nowadays there is a lot that man can do to animals to save their life. Implants and custom prosthetics enable humans to care for animals much better than they could do those days. The 3D printing is now making every challenge an opportunity to experiment something new and actualize it. Non-human friends can now receive all types of medical care that humans receive.
Restored Beak
The successful restoration of the female bald eagle that lost her upper mandible when was shot by poachers in Alaska is just one of many such stories. Life must have been difficult for this bird in the wilderness; she could not feed herself. Her life seemed to take a positive direction when Janie rescued it. What did Janie think of when things were not working as expected? He thought of euthanizing her.
Help came when a mechanical engineer who also happens to have enough knowledge of 3D printing decided to help her. Nate used his 3D printing technology to make a mould of the missing beak, did a 3D scan, tweaked it on 3D model, and then printed it. The remaining beak got beauty back when the 3D printed portion was mounted on it. The female bald eagle got her beauty back, and her upper mandible started to grow recently.
Horse Shoe
3D printing technology does not have any record of it being used on large animals like a horse. Holly a made in Australia could be the first to benefit from 3D printing technology. Holly suffered from laminitis, and her chances of getting crippled were very high if her vet didn’t respond quickly enough. Holly’s vet contacted CSIRO, and they decided to use 3D to design a shoe that fits Holly’s hooves and the ones that she was to use as she recovers after treatment. The custom shoes are well designed and can bear the weight of the horse