These Animals Have Thrived Despite Their Disabilities

This Is One Special Goldfish…

… and special person as well! An aquarium manager named Derek Burnett was distressed when one of the store’s goldfish developed a condition called swim bladder disease. Affected fish aren’t able to swim upright and rarely survive for long. So Burnett made a special “wheelchair” for the fish, enabling it to swim normally and live out its normal lifespan.

As he explained to TODAY, “I got some airline tubing that people usually use in their tank and just placed it around the goldfish. I added some valves to the bottom of it, which acted as a ‘chair’ to prop him up.” The touching story about the ailing fish and his custom-made wheelchair was shared many thousand times on social media and has warmed many hearts. In fact, the director of the National Aquarium said that due to Burnett’s actions, “more and more we’re finding and creating innovative practices and devices like this to help animals.”

Next: meet a speed demon in a wheelchair…