AMHERST – Kodi has a new lease on life. That was obvious from her friendly smile and the way she went from person to person, getting her chin rubbed and her head petted.

The 13-year-old golden retriever had not been able to walk for at least six months, and last week her owners, JoAnn Wegman and Steve Stitt, of Weare, were thrilled.

Dogs like Kodi who have serious mobility problems are typically considered hopeless, but Wegman and Stitt had been reluctant to put down their otherwise healthy pet.

“She was still happy. She still liked to eat,” Wegman said, and she remembers a veterinary technician telling her, “You don’t euthanized handicapped people.”

That’s where Walkin’ Pets by HandicappedPets.com came in.

The Amherst company has sold more than 75,000 dog wheelchairs and related equipment since 2008, including Kodi’s wheelchair.

It was founded by Mark Robinson in memory of his dog, Mercedes, a Keeshond that he put to sleep after a veterinarian told him there was no cure for her mild epilepsy.

That was before the internet would bring together a wealth of information and opinions on virtually any topic. And that’s how Robinson learned to his sorrow that the disease was very treatable.

“If I could have had the internet, I would have made a much more informed choice,” he said.

So Robinson started a community bulletin board for people whose pets had health problems, called HandicappedPets.com. He soon saw the need for devices to help handicapped, but otherwise healthy animals, live longer and happy lives.

With the bulletin board, he said, “thousands of people around the world started to talk, and I listened and asked questions.”

Soon Robinson, who was working in the renewable energy field, started designing a dog wheelchair that specifically addressed the needs of the animal caretakers on his forum: It was adjustable in length, width, and height, folded flat and could be shipped same day.

And there are other items, including a protective “drag bag,” with a scooter attached, to give dogs who have to drag their legs behind them an extra measure of mobility. A “blind dog halo” allows a sight-challenged animal to sense when he’s approaching something. It helps “get their

confidence back,” Robinson said.

Eleven years ago he “borrowed and begged” the money to start the company and has been at the current location for three years, behind PastaAmore on Route 101A. With about 35 employees, including six people who handle calls and emails all day long, it is essentially an e-commerce business, with a large warehouse here and one in Nevada.

There is also a small shop to customize wheelchairs for all kinds of animals – turtles, ducks, rabbits, cats, chickens and even mini-horses. One of those chickens is Granite Heart. Walkin Pets’ engineer Jim Jones had designed a wheelchair for the hen after she was injured by a weasel. Then she gained worldwide fame when the Vermont girl who cares for her complained after someone on Saturday Night Live made fun of the disabled chicken.

Now, Granite Heart is doing great, Robinson said, and so is his business, shipping out 300-400 items on a good day.

“This is a very rewarding place to be,” he said. “This is the magic of it: The difference between a barnyard chicken and a pet chicken is that they become family members.”

Kathy Cleveland may be reached at 673-3100 or kcleveland@cabinet.com.