Prosthetic Leg, Bionic | featured news

Zac Vawter considers himself a test pilot. After losing his right leg in a motorcycle accident, the 31-year-old software engineer signed up to become a research subject, helping to test a trailblazing prosthetic leg that's controlled by his thoughts.

Behold the "bionic dog." (View video, below.) At just five weeks old, Naki'o was abandoned by his owners and wandered into an icy puddle, getting his paws stuck in the frigid water. All four frostbit paws had to be amputated, but in a "heartwarming" twist, the malnourished red heeler puppy was rescued by an animal shelter where, a veterinary technician raised funds to fit him with two prosthetic hind legs. Naki'o took to the prosthetics so "enthusiastically" that the organization Orthopets threw in the other two prosthetics for free. "Naki'o can now not only chase after a ball with other dogs," says vet tech Christie Tomlinson, as quoted by Incredible Features, "but he can beat them to the catch!"