Aiken dachshund breaks stigma against disabled pets

AIKEN, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - An Aiken man and his dog, Tater Tot, are breaking the stigma against dogs with disabilities, while warming the heart of the community.

He’s known as Tater Tot the Wonder Weenie. We asked his dad, what makes him a wonder?

“You wonder where he gets all his energy haha,” Rick Cook, Tater Tot’s dad, says.

Cook loves his wiener dog on wheels.

“He’s very mobile, you put him in this and there’s not much he can’t or won’t do,” his dad says.

Cook says it’s like Tater Tot is being a dog again. He smells all the smells and plays in the grass, he doesn’t let intervertebral disk disease stop him.

“He lost the use of his back legs, and he lost the use of his bowel and bladder control,” Cook says.

When he received the diagnosis three years ago, they recommended he put Tater Tot down. But Cook didn’t want to give up.

Together, they took a leap of faith.

“As long as he has the spirit to fight and to continue, and whatnot, we’re right there with him,” Cook says.

The hope is that one-day Tater Tot will walk on all four legs again.

Twice a week, Tater Tot goes to the vet, where he receives multiple treatments. It’s a lot, but Cook says it’s worth it.

“Would I do it again? Yeah. It’s been really expensive, but yeah, we’d do it again,” Cook says.

He is amazed to see how far Tater Tot the Wonder Weenie has come, and he hopes Tot’s greatest wonder is still yet to come.

Tater Tot finished 26th out of 500 dogs in a Worldwide calendar contest last year. Cook plans to enter Tater Tot again this summer.

Copyright 2023 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.