Senior Dogs: part two -under water physical therapy

by Christy Caplan | February 6, 2009

Thanks so much for all your kind words and encouragement – this will be clumsy as I get started so advice is welcome! First – links for the two articles I mentioned are:

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/

http://www.vet.cornell.edu/publicresources/dog.htm

(I accidentally added these to my blog roll – got it, blog roll = blogs :))

Sandola has osteoarthritis in her front legs. I have been taking her to Back on Track as my vet recommended we look at water physical therapy. We take her to a local park and noticed this past summer she was barely able to make it back to the car. This is a loop we’ve been taking her on for years so thought she may be showing signs of early arthritis.

So am I a believer in this? I strongly believe physical therapy has helped Sandola with the pain and inflammation she was experiencing. The vet, Dr. Shaw, evaluates her and provides massage in the areas she’s tight (just like us) and after the session she ends in the under water treadmill for two 8 – 10 minute walks. The water’s buoyancy provides a natural way to alleviate pressure on the joints. I had a long chat with the vet tech and it’s also proven that the natural endorphins released during this exercise is an added benefit as well. According to Back on Track:

Therapy used in conjunction with regular veterinary care can increase your pet’s quality of life by increasing mobility and lessening pain, by providing appropriate activity and keeping your pet feeling good about himself and his recovery. Therapy can help in resolving:

Limited Mobility

Pain and Inflammation

Poor nerve responses

Loss of balance and coordination

Loss of strength and muscle mass

Disuse atrophy or reflex inhibition

Soft tissue damage

Post surgical healing

Obesity

Incontinence

Wounds

Check out: http://www.backontrackvetrehab.com/

And I don’t know if you all saw the post/comment from Aggie but in addition to physical therapy for her lab she also found a local source for natural glucosamine meds which is awesome. Ill try and find an online source as well.

I’ve been asked to blog about dog doors and which ones folks really like – so that will be a future topic. And I’ll post some thoughts on acupuncture too. But to give you a taste – attached is a picture of Bruiser at the acupuncturist. Signing off for now.

www.hiphoundpdx.com- Bruiser is highlighted as this month’s hip hound at the Hip Hound Dog Store on NW23rd. Check him out online too!