Thursday, June 30, 2011

Making Your Backyards Wheelchair Friendly In Time For Summer Fun

By Ellen Lamatan


Garden dining, neighborhood barbeques, summer holiday pool celebrations (even the inflated kiddie pool type), each of them most likely happen at the open garden. What better method to add every member of your family, and we mean ALL, in each and every challenge within the season than making the yard wheelchair ready. Dog wheelchair or people wheelchair available, either way, it's a win-win.

Designing transitions in the backyard for greater convenience needs a bit of work however the exact amount depends on the actual garden; but, the effect will certainly be worthwhile. Basically, making your garden comfortably navigable means clearing objects in the way and ensuring that surfaces are level.

Using a dog wheelchair, your disabled pet will have a wide range of movement but it will still not still be the same as using four legs. Maneuverability is still somewhat limited compared to what they had before illness or disability. Minimize the obstacles your pet or other wheeled guests might face while in your backyard.

First, how do they get there to begin with? Is there access from inside your house or from a side gate? Access from your house might mean steps, so make sure to install a ramp. These are easy enough to make. But if you're not handy, invite a couple of neighbors over and make an afternoon of it. Throw some barbeque on the grill afterward as a thank you; this will get the summer backyard partying started.

After that, confirm the top of the garden. Whether you've got grass, flagstone, concrete pavers, or wooden decking, the main thing is to make sure that there are no protrusions, that the exterior is flat and smooth. A dog and a dog wheelchair is light enough to not have a issue with wet grass, the exact same though, should not be said for a human in a wheelchair, so be mindful of this in case you have a grassy backyard as well as a wheelchair-bound guest.

That's about it. A clear space to wheel about for both canine and human guests makes a backyard and ideal summer hangout. Throw in a grill, a long picnic table, and comfy seats, and you can start thinking of excuses to throw a get-together.




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