Tortoise walks again after amputation with 3D printed wheel [Video]

PORTLAND, Oregon — A 10-year-old red-footed tortoise named Cookie is movin’ and groovin’ again, thanks to 3D printing technology. The DoveLewis Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Hospital said the 3.5-pound animal had to get his leg amputated in early March after suffering an injury. 

“Red-footed tortoises are prone to flipping themselves over in their enclosure and having trouble righting themselves,” said Kelly Flaminio, the senior exotics veterinarian at DoveLewis. 

That’s exactly what happened to Cookie: His leg got pinned in his enclosure when his owners were away.

“It probably caused some blood vessels and nerve damage to the end of the limb,” Flaminio said. “So when I saw Cookie — unfortunately, the owners had noticed, and I kind of pointed out as well — the base of the limb around his foot and around his toenails had started to shrivel because it was …