Photo by Angela Foster – University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

When the call went out seeking assistance for a puppy requiring special care, a faculty member at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and a recent graduate were “all in.”

A month ago, a tiny Chihuahua weighing just 2.5-pounds captured the hearts of animal shelter staff even before it became clear that the dog had a special medical condition that required special attention: Niblet had a soft spot on the top of his head—about one and a half centimeters in diameter—indicating that his skull had not fully fused.

The Humane Educational Society (HES) called mechanical engineering professor Trevor Elliott for help, with an unusual request.

Niblet’s condition, hydrocephalus (water on the brain) can make even the simplest household accidents—like something falling off a counter—potentially life-threatening,

“We started brainstorming how we could get the head protected,” recalled HES Director of Veterinary Services Sarah Callahan.

Dr. Samantha Blair brought up the contacts that she had at the university. She made a couple of phone calls, and later that day, the engineering department delivered a dose of hope for the 10-week-old puppy.

“When we realized that we were going to have to make a cap, I remembered the amazing 3D printing abilities that the graduate students had,” said Blair.

After learning about Niblet’s situation, Professor Elliott immediately felt compelled to lend a hand and arrived that very afternoon. “As soon as I saw his cute little face, I said, ‘We’ve got to help.’”

He enlisted the assistance of Connor Mackey, a May graduate who led the 2024 UTC Rocket Mocs team in winning the 3D Printing Award at the recent NASA Student Launch competition—“and he was all in.”

“As soon as I saw the email chain, I knew exactly how to do this. I knew I could actually help this dog,” said Mackey, who will begin pursuing a Masters in Engineering at UTC this fall.

Elliott solicited the help of Volkswagen’s Justin Stephens to scan Niblet’s head to get a 3D image. He and Mackey then took different approaches toward creating headgear for Niblet; Mackey’s resembles a football helmet, while Elliott’s is more of a skull cap.

3-D printed helmet for Niblet at the Humane Educational Society – By Angela Foster / University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

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After multiple iterations, they met with Niblet at HES on July 15, to fit the puppy with protective headgear—and Niblet quickly took to the football helmet design.

“It’s just kind of crazy what you can do,” Mackey said. “It was honestly a very simple process of getting a scan and then modeling around that. It’s really cool that you can save a dog’s life using this kind of manufacturing process.”

Elliott added, “It was pretty cool to see him walking around with it and knowing that it looks like at least one of our solutions is going to help him on his journey.”

“Fitting a puppy with protective headgear is unchartered territory for us,” said Callahan, who is hopeful it will be the solution. “We really do think that he’s in the best possible place to have a good outcome and the longest life that he possibly can in a happy home.”

Caroline Smith, HES director of animal protection services, praised how quickly everyone rallied to support little Niblet.

“Sometimes in this line of work, you don’t always get happy endings, so it’s so nice to see everyone come together to help out an animal,” Smith said.

UC Foundation Associate Professor Trevor Elliott and UTC graduate Connor Mackey try out 3D-printed helmets at Chattanooga’s Humane Educational Society – Photo by Angela Foster

“This definitely took a lot of teamwork running with this idea—and we’re so thankful for UTC that they were willing to step in and help.”

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Without the helmet, Niblet would have needed more than a cat’s nine lives to survive—but with it, he can live a good, long one.

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