Our patients here at PAWS Veterinary Center enjoy having three doctors on staff offering acupuncture as a treatment modality for various conditions and not just for our rehabilitation patients! This complementary modality is a safe, non-invasive, and successful way to treat pain as well as many other illnesses and conditions such as those listed below.

Veterinary medical acupuncture is science-based and is the application of very slender, sterile needles to specific points on the body near nerves and vessels leading to improved comfort and function of specific muscles, organs and nerves through neuromodulation and enhancing blood flow.

Acupuncture is an important component of many of our rehabilitation patients’ treatment plans for injuries such as:

• Orthopedic injury including arthritis in joints, hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, knee injury, shoulder pain, tendonitis and much more.
• Neurologic disease including neck and/or back pain, unsteady walking, and limb weakness.
• Soft tissue injury including muscular spasm, knots or pain.
• Fecal and/or urinary incontinence.
• Post-operative recovery for pain management (decrease oral medications needed).
• Limb swelling or edema.
• Local pain and anti-inflammation.

We can also target many other disease processes through acupuncture and improve comfort and recovery such as:

• Gastrointestinal disease-causing nausea, decreased appetite, diarrhea, and constipation.
• Emotional anxiety/stress.
• Rhinitis/sinusitis.
• Reproductive problems.
• Eye illnesses including glaucoma, dry eye, and others.
• Kidney and/or liver disease.
• Seizures.
• Cancer.
• Auto-immune diseases.

Acupuncture is well tolerated by nearly all patients, and once they realize that they are more relaxed and comfortable afterward patients begin to get excited to come in for more treatments!

Hydrotherapy, or aquatic therapy, is physical therapy and exercise in warm water including walking in the underwater treadmill, swimming, and pool exercises. By utilizing our heated underwater treadmill we are able to provide an extended level of care for our patients whether for exercise with minimal weight bearing on painful and arthritic joints, endurance conditioning for athletes, post-operative muscle strengthening and gait retraining, and even weight loss.

Benefits of Warm Water:

• Increases blood flow to muscles.
• Increases joint flexibility and thus range of motion.
• Decreases pain while encouraging circulation.

In the underwater treadmill, we can adjust the water level for changes in buoyancy and therefore the amount of weight bearing on different joints. The higher the water level, the less weight the body is bearing on the joints when walking. This reduces pain on joints while enhancing their range of motion. Animals that will not bear much weight on a limb or walk very stiff with less flexion and extension can gait more normally and use the joint in the intended range of motion with hydrotherapy. With the body surrounded by water, animals have increased confidence while standing and balancing to try to walk again and use limbs after injury and surgery. The water pressure also helps to reduce swelling in limbs, and the water resistance and surface tension are important for muscle strengthening.

Underwater Treadmill:

• Allows gait retraining with proper mechanics (using assistance if needed).
• Encourages weight bearing on affected limbs.
• Increases overall range of motion by increasing flexion (less than swimming) while increasing extension (more than swimming).
• More controlled environment than swimming as referred to body mechanics

Many dogs are so passionate about swimming and playing fetch in water that they will go beyond their limits increasing the risk for injury and overexertion. This is a concern for pets that are out of shape, overweight, injured, or have arthritis. Instead of having your pet swim in a river or lake, we recommend a training program managed by our rehabilitation doctor to achieve your goals and reduce the risk for injury.

Massage is the systematic, therapeutic, and functional stroking and kneading of the soft tissues of the body. There are numerous techniques ranging from lighter, softer strokes to deeper tissue massage. The technique chosen depends on the size of the area, the desired pressure, the rate and rhythm, and the duration of the massage. This tool is utilized at various times during rehabilitation, and we often perform massage prior to a session to loosen trigger points as well as during physical therapy sessions when the tissues are warm.

BENEFITS:

• Relieves muscle spasm and tension.
• Pain reduction by stimulating lots of free sensory nerve endings.
• Encourages physical and mental relaxation.
• Allows examination of deeper tissues when superficial tissues relax.
• Encourages blood flow to tissues to deliver oxygen and nutrients.
• Decreases swelling and edema.
• Minimizes scar and tissue adhesions after tissue trauma or surgery.
• Decreases delayed-onset muscle soreness after exercise.
• Reduces inflammation and promotes cell metabolism in muscles for healing.
• Improves human-animal bond.

Massage is an important key in physical rehabilitation for animals. Often when animals have an injury, the body compensates and uses the soft tissues and muscles differently than how they normally function. This creates compensatory muscle soreness and trigger points (knots) that need attention. We often teach owners how to perform massage themselves on their pets so it can be performed regularly at home.

Therapeutic exercise is a physical therapy intervention encompassing a broad range of activities designed to restore or improve musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary and/or neurologic function. Some form of therapeutic exercise is indicated in every physical therapy case.

The goals of therapeutic exercises are to improve active pain-free range of motion and limb use, improve muscle strength and muscle mass, improve daily function and quality of life, and to help prevent further injury. With these goals in mind, the rehabilitation professional must use specialized knowledge to determine exercises that are appropriate for a patient’s level of ability, age, endurance, the severity of the injury, and stage of recovery.

There are numerous benefits of incorporating therapeutic exercises into a rehabilitation program. They are a non-invasive form of therapy, facilitate an increased rate of recovery from injury, improve quality of movement of limbs, and have a positive psychological effect for both the owner and pet. Not only do therapeutic exercises enhance performance and endurance in our pets needing physical therapy, but this benefit is also important for sporting and agility dogs that need core-conditioning and want to enhance their performance level.

Similar to people that go to the gym regularly for these benefits, it is important to vary the routine for our patients as well. Animals get bored doing the same exercises repeatedly, so creativity is an important aspect of rehabilitation for animals. At PAWS Veterinary Center, we try a number of different activities to determine what works best for an individual in order to modify the treatment plan. It is also important to allow the patient to guide the increase in activity.  While many of these exercises can be performed at home, they are best guided by the rehabilitation practitioner so that the progression of therapy is carefully monitored and assessed.

The intensity and difficulty of the exercises vary greatly depending on the individual’s condition and injury. With patients that have recently had spinal surgery, for example, our initial exercises are simply targeted at getting them standing on their own. We facilitate this utilizing a number of our physioballs, the land treadmill with sling assistance, and nerve-stimulating balancing exercises. For patients that are in the final stages of recovery from knee surgery or limb injury, they will perform exercises such as carrying weighted vests, perform dancing and wheelbarrowing exercises, and climb stairs with resistance bands between their feet. Different exercises target specific muscle groups and range of motion in certain joints, so the exercise plan is continually evolving based on the patient’s needs. Come visit us for a free tour of our rehabilitation area!

Therapeutic exercise is a physical therapy intervention encompassing a broad range of activities designed to restore or improve musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary and/or neurologic function. Some form of therapeutic exercise is indicated in every physical therapy case. The rehabilitation professional must use specialized knowledge to determine exercises that are appropriate for a patient’s level of ability, age, endurance, the severity of the injury, and stage of recovery. The intensity and difficulty of the exercises vary greatly depending on the individual’s condition and injury.

GOALS:

• Improve active pain-free range of motion.
• Improve muscle strength and muscle mass.
• Encourage limb use after surgery or injury and increase weight bearing.
• Improve daily function and quality of life.
• Prevent further injury.

BENEFITS:

• A non-invasive form of therapy.
• Facilitates an increased rate of recovery from injury.
• Improves the quality of movement of limbs.
• It has a positive psychological effect on both the owner and pet.
• Enhances core-conditioning for sporting and competition dogs.

IMPORTANT FOR ANIMAL REHABILITATION:

• Vary the routine.
  • We try a number of different activities to determine what works best for an individual in order to modify the treatment plan.
• Allow the patient to guide the increase in activity. 
  • While many of these exercises can be performed at home, they are best guided by the rehabilitation practitioner so that the progression of therapy is carefully monitored and assessed.

EXAMPLES OF EQUIPMENT:

• Land treadmill
• Swiss balls
• PhysioRolls
• Fit discs and donuts
• Balance boards
• Ramps/inclines
• Stairs
• Leg weights
• Weighted vests
• Cavaletti rails
• Agility equipment

When your pet is limping that indicates pain, weakness, and/or a structural problem affecting the leg’s range of motion. Limping is a common sign of bone and joint disease, but it also occurs with muscle and nerve injuries making it a nonspecific sign for orthopedic and neurologic conditions.

DETERMINIMING IF THERE IS LAMENESS

• History is important: When did it begin? Is it getting worse or better? Did the lameness appear suddenly or was there an event that caused injury?
• Which leg is involved? A dog often holds up the paw or places less weight on a painful leg, especially one that has recently been injured.
• The dog’s head bobs up on the painful side and down on the side with the good leg.
• A dog usually takes shorter steps on a painful or weak leg.
• With chronic lameness, the dog may take very short strides with no noticeable limp. This is also true if more than one leg hurts with arthritis for example.
• With neurologic conditions, patients often take short, choppy steps or long and lopey strides that can appear as if their legs are drunk.

DETERMINING THE CAUSE

If you think you know which leg is involved, try to identify the specific site.

• Start by examining the nails, between toes, and footpads for cuts, punctures, torn nails, or red and swollen areas.
• Carefully feel the leg from the toes up. Locate areas of tenderness, heat, and swelling by applying gentle pressure.
• Flex and extend all joints from the toes to the shoulder or hip for pain or resistance. Lack of easy movement or resistance is a sign of joint pain, which will be evident when the dog attempts to pull the leg free.
• If you aren’t sure if something you feel is normal, compare it to the dog’s other leg.

Once you have isolated the injury site to the best of your ability, give us a call. We are happy to help you assess whether your pet needs to be seen by a veterinarian. Please keep in mind that a pet in pain can react by lashing out so please take precautions when examining any pet in discomfort or pain.

A 2014 study found that an estimated 52.7% of US dogs are overweight or obese, and an estimated 57.9% of US cats are overweight or obese. These pets are at risk for joint pain and arthritis as well as other medical conditions such as diabetes. 

For pets struggling with losing weight, the Rehabilitation Department at PAWS can create a weight loss program including appropriate nutrition while dieting, underwater treadmill exercise, and a home exercise program to help achieve weight loss goals. 

The underwater treadmill is instrumental in facilitating weight loss through cardio while simultaneously alleviating pressure on the joints and spine thus allowing exercise safely and confidently for our companions. Additionally, the dedicated physical therapy staff at PAWS excels at challenging our canine athletes through individualized strengthening and core conditioning programs to help athletes perform at their peak.