Massage and digestion

Cathal’s Mum has known us for many years and even hosted us in her shop to chat to her customers about the many benefits of canine physical therapy. And now it is our turn to help her with a not often discussed benefit of physical therapy - digestive issues. 

In 2016 we had a request to help Floc who was suffering from constipation. When he came to us, we performed lots of gentle work over his abdominal muscles which were, understandably, as tight as a drum. Before he left, he had a few successful ‘movements’ in our garden and then, over the next few days, his carer would send me plenty of texts describing other successes – LOTS of successes. 

Cathal had been suffering from an Impacted bowel for 1 week and, like Floc, had been straining uncomfortably. This was, in turn, affecting his whole body. He was standing hunched, he was wobbly, he was constantly trying to push down. He looked very uncomfortable. Think how you would feel or stand in a similar situation. 

His Mum had taken him to vets a few days before my visit where he had been sedated and flushed as the X Rays showed he was backed up into his colon. But he was still holding himself tight. 

He is a bouncy boy with a short back for a French Bulldog. When he is well, he doesn’t really squat when pooing but stands and pushes. Any extra hunching due to this new discomfort, would affect his mobility further. Cathal was made for massage – he adored it. 

I started working on other areas of his body before getting to his tummy. But I needn’t have worried. He just smiled and sighed when working around his abdominal area. 

I spent an hour with this lovely boy easing out his strained back muscles and generally helping his recover from his poo-tension. 

After I left, he was fast asleep with a relaxed look on his face. Massage therapy is truly holistic working on the whole body.