Home Depot Employees Build Custom Wagon for Dog with Cancer
APRIL 20, 2015 UPDATE: Ike has lost his battle with cancer, according to Dr. Marty Becker. Risa Feldman told him Ike crossed the Rainbow Bridge on April 14. “I laid him down to sleep, over the ocean on a hilltop,” she said, “among some special friends at sunset. He was so content, but ready to go.”
Ernesto Moran and Justin Wadman truly deserve Home Depot Employees of the Year awards.
When Risa Feldman went to the Home Depot in Hawthorne, Calif., and asked Moran for advice on how to improve the cart for her 15-year-old dog, Ike, who has difficulty walking due to bone cancer in a rear leg, Moran didn’t just explain what to do. He and Wadman voluntarily built a new “Ike’s Trike” wagon themselves.
“I showed him the cart that I was trying to use and I asked him, ‘What can I do to change this cart and build it so that it’s longer or his size?'” Feldman told KABC. “He just shook his head and said, ‘Let me give it some thought and I’ll call you later.'”
Feldman has had Ike ever since he was 3 years old. He may only have a few months left to live, so Feldman is making his final days as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. She said he especially enjoys people watching at Manhattan Beach, where they live.
“It’s his favorite thing to do,” Feldman told ABC News. “He’ll lay there in the sun.”
Ike still enjoys walks along the beach, with the help of a harness or cart. Unlike his previous cart, Ike’s Trike was built to the dog’s size, and one end unfolds into a ramp to make it easy for him to get on board.
Moran and Wadman also built a ramp to make it easier for Ike to climb into Feldman’s car.
Ike was presented with his Ike’s Trike yesterday.
“I offered to build this for her and let her know that it’s something that Home Depot offers — giving back to our customers,” Moran told KABC.
Feldman said Ike immediately felt right at home in his pawesome new ride.
“I just wanted people to know that there are still people out there who do good things,” she told KABC.