It helps when the whole family is involved

Ted is very well named as he is like a big cuddly bear. He is an almost 8 year old Akita Collie cross who was diagnosed with bilateral cruciate issues which his Mum hopes to treat conservatively. 

Their first method of treatment was weight loss. I know that doesn’t sound like ‘treatment’ but for any weight-bearing issues, getting some of the extra kilos off will be most beneficial. His weight had crept up to 35 kg with the reduced exercise but now is going down into the upper twenties. He still has some way to go, but gradual is better than nothing. 

He has some muscle wastage on his hips, understandably, as he protects his knees when walking. An aim with the physical therapy routines for Ted was to build those muscles up again while maintaining the tone in the front leg muscles which are taking some of the extra strain currently. 

The whole family was involved in the session. Each took their turn at feeling how his muscles were before therapy so they have a base-line and then again at the end plus each went through some of the massage routines they were shown. A real family involvement.

This means that everyone will be able to help Ted start his rehabilitation and maintain it. 

They also took onboard the household adaptations suggested. Things like raising the food and water bowl so he doesn’t have to place undue pressure on his knees. They all went round the house bringing back objects saying “Is this tall enough? Or what about this?” Who knew that one house could contain so many simple bowl raisers? 

They also all got involved with the simple strengthening exercises he was given – which Ted thought wonderful. 

He was in his element with so many people caring for him and helping him. With such a good family support system around him, Ted is now in many good hands for his conservative treatment plan. 

#itsafamilyaffair 

Avascular Necrosis and Complementary Therapy

Sonny’s Feedback 

In June of this year, I was invited over to help Sonny. He was then not even a year old but diagnosed with bilateral Avascular Necrosis affecting both hip joints. The vet decided the best plan for his recovery was Femoral head & neck excision. While this condition is common-ish in young dogs, to be affected with both legs at the same time is rarer. 

It meant that little Sonny could not enjoy being a puppy. He has only known wobbly gaits and compensation for his weak hind legs. The vets operated on one leg in May with the other hip booked in for 6 weeks later. 

His Mum wrote “It is very important that the muscle and scar tissue around these joints is built up to ensure as good a mobility as possible. Is this something you can help with?” She is already a Reiki practitioner and wanted to combine physical therapy with energy healing to give Sonny as much help as possible. He was also on anti-inflammatory medication. 

When I first visited him, he was walking with his hind legs closer together but was not showing any signs of gait discomfort placing both legs down equally. I guess he had never known anything different so was doing the dog thing of “Getting On With It” 

The session was more aimed at training for his Mum to build up the muscles of the leg that had been operated on to help support him for the operation on the other leg. Literally, to give him a leg to stand on! I often get asked what a fit muscle should look and feel like. 

 I use the analogy of a chicken fillet. A high-quality chicken fillet. A Waitrose or Marks & Spencer’s chicken fillet (although other supermarkets are available). The affected thigh muscles of Sonny looked more like a ham slice or lower quality fillet. They needed considerable building up. 

He had other compensatory issues, including tight neck and overused shoulder muscles. 

I devised a massage routine plus physiotherapy exercises for his Mum to perform daily. 

I recently had an email saying “I just thought you'd like an update on Sonny. The massage techniques and exercises you taught me were so helpful in his recovery. He went on to have the second surgery carried out in July from which he has recovered equally well using massage and exercise. He hasn't needed any further intervention and his Lidl chicken fillets as you called them are now looking like Tesco Finest!! We've just returned from a break on the Isle of Wight where he ran freely on the beach for hours on end. So a big thank you to you from us!!” 

I asked if it was OK to share this story and his Mum said “It can be very worrying for people who find their dog needs this operation, but it is generally very successful and Sonny is living proof!! If his story can help other owners that would be wonderful.” 

 She also sent some photos of Sonny post-operation and allowed me to share his before and after X-rays. Look at the way the femoral head was not fitting in the socket in the ‘before’ picture on the left and how the head was excised in the ‘after’ picture. Here are all the pictures – shared. 

Poor old Sonny had spent his puppy days with those ill-fitting joints. Physical therapy, massage, exercise, Reiki and medication all working to allow Sonny to run like the puppy he should be on the beach in the Isle of Wight. What a great transformation and testament to the power of complementary therapy. 

Award winning canine massage

JC’s back (again) 

JC is a champion award winning 9 year old Collie who is the dog equivalent to the heptathlete Jessica Ennis in that she competes in many different sporting events.

I was asked to help her last year when she suddenly stopped being able to perform a controlled sit with her Mum during an event. In fact she missed this move a couple of times which was noticed by the Mum of another of my dogs I have helped. She was fine with all the running and jumping events, possibly because she didn’t need to think about those, but was running on excitable energy. This was an exact event which gave her time to think whether she could do it or not. 

At that first meeting with JC, her Mum said she can be a ‘bit morose’ and standoffish. Nope, JC walked over, licked my whole face and lay down on the mat. 

Flash forward exactly a year to the day and I’m invited back to see JC who has exactly the same problem again. Her Mum admitted that because JC did not display any further mobility issues after my last appointment she had forgotten about me. I was not crushed, just glad that I was able to help with the single treatment. But as soon as the issue recurred, JC’s Mum remembered that she was going to add JC to my maintenance programme. So I was asked if I had space to come back as soon as possible before it became a more chronic issue with JC. 

This time, JC welcomed me like her best forever friend. She rushed across the room, placed her legs on my shoulders and totally cleaned my face and ears! She had the same issue as before with tightened muscles at the rear end especially the adductors. All the muscles she would need to perform a controlled sit. Clearly, in her head, rather than do a bad sit because she was so tight, she thought a no sit would suffice. Unfortunately, that also means disqualification from that event. It was very important to ease those muscles out. 

I often talk about the dog leading the massage session. With JC it was like working with the Big Controller. She lay on her side giving me her back. Then she rolled over opening her back legs giving me her adductors. Then she did a shuffly circle so I had access to her biceps. Then stuck her head in my lap so I could work on her neck. She was in total charge of what she needed and what I did next. I just followed her cues. 

After an hour, she got off the mat and wandered back to her own bed where she lay down. 

I suggested to her Mum that as the problem seems to occur with the more precise events, she could build an obstacle course of different thickness of mattresses, followed by a few poles and then more mattresses laid out in a random pattern in the garden or room. If she walks JC round this course slowly it will assist her proprioception as she won’t know what is coming next. Hopefully that will help rebalance her. 

We are also making a specific date for a return visit this time so I am not forgotten. 

That weekend I received an update on how JC had performed at her next event. The email said “…..JC has worked very well including the dreaded sit on the move position! JC won open 'C' Bitch today!!! “ That is definitely a #result 

Meet Kizzy – or "when the world takes a full circle"

Alison heard of me from a local dog groomer and asked me over to try and help her dog Kizzy who has been displaying issues with her right leg for the past six months after a suspected fall.

When I walked up to her door, Kizzy’s Mum came out and said “I know you”. Indeed she did. This was Alison, the person who taught me all about human massage way back in 1996/97 at City College Brighton. Here was someone who gave me my qualifications TWENTY years ago and now here I was helping her with massage therapy. Spooky. How the world turns.

After a quick “Goodness…what have you been up to?” and twenty year catch up, I was introduced to the adorable frisky Kizzy - a 4 year old Parson Jack Russell/Springer Spaniel cross (yes….THAT frisky).  She immediately showed me how much she loves to bounce and play and lick while hiding her right rear leg.

She has become quite clever at hiding the point of issue while just getting on with being Kizzy. But that is what dogs do. Alison is a trained professional human physical therapist but was looking at Kizzy as a parent/guardian rather than through her trained therapist eyes. Once she could see how Kizzy was compensating with her gait and how she felt, she knew how to help.

Kizzy had been diagnosed as suffering from a probable luxating patella on her right rear leg, but of low grade currently. Alison was advised to look for physiotherapy as first treatment, keeping any surgical intervention as a later option.

Despite Kizzy having a therapist as a Mum, she took a while to accept massage. However, after 30 minutes or so, I asked Alison to feel where I was working and Kizzy looked round to her as though to say “Erm, no Mum…..Dr Les can do it thank you”. Oh, how the world turns! But soon Mum will be as good as me.

Between Kizzy and I, we identified several places on her body where she needs and wants massage which Mum now has to do, plus some simple gentle weight-bearing and stretching exercises to build up the muscles and mobility of her rear right leg. Hopefully, we can help her regain her confidence in using that leg and start walking comfortably again. 

Muscle spasms in dogs

Most of us have had one – a sudden involuntary contraction of a muscle or group of muscles which really really hurts. They are different from a muscle twitch which is an uncontrolled fine movement of a small segment of a larger muscle that can be seen under the skin. Spasms can affect large parts of a muscle group, the whole muscle, or even adjacent muscles. They can occur suddenly, usually resolve quickly, and are often painful. Spasms cause visible muscle twitching whereas a cramp is more of a prolonged and uncomfortable contraction. 

A muscle in spasm will feel tight and tender to the touch as it remains in spasm to protect the site from further injury. Although it is usually accompanied by pain, quite often the dog will live without showing outward signs so may well be missed. But when they are severe, a bulging muscle may be seen or felt underneath the skin at the site of spasm. If we get such a pain, we tend to feel the need to stretch the muscle involved, thus relieving the spasm and resolving the episode. But for a dog, this new pain can be quite traumatic and disorientating. 

Muscle spasms usually heal with time in a couple of days or weeks since the muscles retain their good blood supply to bring the necessary nutrients and proteins for healing to take place. But if they recur the affected muscles may start to weaken as dog may avoid using them which may, in turn, lead to muscular atrophy and subsequent weakening with time. Massage is a perfect therapy for these issues to try and prevent them or, at least, reduce their severity. 

Massage can also be used preventatively by warming up the muscles before any exercises and then gently helping them to cool down afterwards. Hopefully this will prevent the vicious pain-soreness-pain cycle.

Now meet Millie. Millie is a 3 year old French Bulldog who has now had three episodes of spasm in her neck. These have been very severe which causes her neck muscles to bulge out and almost vibrate leaving her exhausted and panting at the end with her neck scrunched up like a tortoise going into its shell. Her discomfort is also displayed by her getting up, then lying down, then getting up again as though she simply doesn’t know which position to get into to relieve her pain. 

On the worst occasion her Mum thought she was possibly having a seizure and took her to the emergency vets. They said it was unlikely to be an epileptic fit or seizure as Millie turned to her Mum when called so was quite aware of her surroundings. 

Millie’s vet suggested that her she has some massage and physical manipulation to attempt to ease her stiff neck and prevent any further bouts. 

Millie is a very happy bouncy girl who is also quite responsive to massage as I discovered. On the initial touch she stood still judging who I was and what I was about to do then gradually helped me with my assessment. We started on the massage mat but she guided me up to the sofa so she could settle straight into her bed afterwards. 

Her neck muscles were extremely tight both superficially and deeper. She loved the kneading and stretching techniques. Luckily, she likes her treats so we were able to devise and practice a series of 4 active exercises to extend and help rotate her neck. 

By the end of the session she looked noticeably longer especially at the neck which also appeared visibly less bulky. Hopefully with maintenance and preventative regular massage and exercises from her Mum, we can help ease Millie’s issues and she can remain with her head and neck held high. 

Hemivertebrae in dogs

Hemivertebrae is a congenital abnormality of the spine which often affects brachiocephalic breeds, such as the English Bulldog, French Bulldog, Pug and Boston Terriers. The vertebrae become deformed, either by fusing or becoming wedge-shaped, which can cause a twisting of the spine. The deformity in the vertebrae can cause compression of the spinal cord sometimes leading to weakness of the hind limbs. Fortunately, many dogs with this condition do not exhibit any clinical signs or pain, and do not need to be treated. Rest and anti-inflammatories can be helpful for affected dogs. Only in the more severe cases would surgery be considered as necessary to relieve compression on the spinal cord. 

Now meet Will.

Just before the festive season I was invited over to help Will. He is an 8 year old French Bulldog who was rescued a couple of years ago so his physical and genetic background is unknown. 

Recently he had started to knuckle his back paws and was wobbly on his rear legs. When his Mum took him to the vet, it was thought he could have hemivertebrae. 

In Will’s case the vet prescribed anti-inflammatories for Will and recommended that his Mum try canine massage. Will's Mum, Alison, has known of AchyPaw for a while since she works for the Bulldog Rescue & Rehoming Trust where we've supported a couple of their annual bulldog picnics with our stall. Those shows have always been some of our favourites as there is a sea of bulldogs of all ages and sizes so you get lots of cuddles. 
There are some pictures half way down the page on the AchyPaw website here http://achypaw.com/news-and-articles/events2014/ with the adorable Kiss-A-Bull booth.

When I heard of Will’s condition I thought there could be two options. Firstly, I could treat him myself but that may involve several visits to help him along. Or I could provide Alison with a tailored massage lesson and routine with specific exercises to help him regain his posture and confidence. 

We opted for the second as I could always return for a top up maintenance therapy session should he need one. 

His condition didn't seem to be causing him any pain, more like annoyance because his back legs didn't want to support his movement. Initial palpation revealed a distinct tightness from his mid spine, also reinforced by the fact his fur was quite different over that area being coarse rather than smooth over the rest of his body. 

As he became more trusting with massage and touch, he subtly shifted his body so I was working over that area, his shoulder muscles and neck which were also very tight due to him overusing them. 

I showed Alison a routine on one side of his body and then she took charge of the other side. By that time Will was in French Bulldog paradise, loving every stroke and knead. He was also very good at the exercises we tried out on him. 

By the end of the two-hour session, he was visibly happier and moving a lot easier, even standing straight with no knuckling. Hopefully with his Mum doing her homework regularly, which I know she is, we can get little Will back in his feet again enjoying the New Year. In fact I received feedback later that same day “Huge thank you for coming round to give Will massage therapy and show me how to do it. Will was so receptive and to see results straight away was amazing. I have one very sleepy Frenchie now who is curled up sucking on his teddy. Les you are my hero xxxxxx”. 

Once again, this demonstrates the multi-purpose benefits that canine massage can offer. Not just for arthritis but for a diverse variety of other conditions. I guess some things are worth doing on Christmas Eve other than wrapping the presents. 

AchyPaw Canine Mobility Advice

An important element of what I do is education….or maybe the term should be awareness. Nothing is really rocket science but it is just making the Mums and Dads of the dogs I see, aware of environmental or daily living changes they can make to help the mobility of their pet. 

The classic one is flooring, and I’ve mentioned this one many times. Wooden floors are lovely and easy to keep clean, but little paws, older paws, arthritic legs, find them tricky to keep their footing and sometimes slip and slide. Mats and rugs help enormously. You don’t have to carpet the whole house, but adding ‘islands’ of rugs as places the dogs can use to get up or lie down on, can make such a difference. Doing the homework each dog parent is given – tailored massage routines that can be done daily – help enormously as well as doing the appropriate recommended exercises. 

AchyPaw Mobility Advice

Poppy’s Mum has done EVERYTHING I suggested since my first visit last week. I was met today with “Poppy loves walking over the poles, she really lifts her hind leg to get over them, can you show me again the Incline exercise?” She showed me the little buggy she bought for £15 from the Friday Ad which she uses so that Poppy can be pushed to the park while her other dogs walk along side, and can then get out to play with her brother and sister. This means Poppy doesn’t get tired before she actually reaches the Park and her siblings don’t feel like they are missing out on their exercise. Everyone is happy and it has really benefitted her mobility. Poppy's Mum showed me the 'half steps' I suggested she bought so that Poppy could get in and out of the garden more comfortably.  She is even going to buy some more.  As I sat down on the floor to work with Poppy I had to move away the lavender heat pad that Mum had bought for Poppy to be placed over her hips after a walk to help ease out her muscles (not hot, just gentle warm heat). She has even bought a new bed for Poppy with sides so that she can fit the new memory foam mattress inside and Poppy can sleep on the floor without any draughts aggravating her arthritis. Add to that the daily massage she gives Poppy and I think the entire check list has been checked and some. And that’s just the first week. 

Very heart-warming…well done Poppy’s Mum.

World Arthritis Day

#WorldArthritisDay matters to dogs as well. 

Osteoarthritis as a diagnosis for your dog always sounds scary. But regular visits to your vet with appropriate advice and medication plus the addition of massage, suitable exercises, advice and education, the scariness can be helped. 

Take Poppy – a 13 year old Jack Russell terrier who was referred to me by Guy from Coastway Vets with a whole series of scary sounding symptoms including hind leg weakness with slight response to medication, severe arthritis in both knees shown by X-rays which were also bony and ossified, lumbar/sacral joint of the spine showing some spondylosis which is in turn pinching the femoral nerve which is causing her right hind leg to drag. He wanted me to go along and add physical therapy to her treatment plan to ease out her discomfort and try and give her some confidence back. 

I spread my massage mat on the floor and sat on it, as usual, until the dog approaches me. Normally this takes a few minutes. But Poppy saw the mat, saw me on it and strolled across the mat to sit in my lap with her back leaning toward me. Her Mum said “Oh….she doesn’t do that to anyone. Is that normal behaviour for a dog who hasn’t seen you before?”. I replied “Erm…..well…..yes actually but not normally with such speed and confidence”. It’s not magic, it’s just dogs sense things we don’t. They don’t faff about with polite conversation and cups of tea. Once they have decided that you’re there to help it is “OK…you’re here…I’m here…get going” 

Poppy did not move for 60 minutes except to shuffle around in my lap a little. But after an hour she got up and trotted off to the garden. And that trot was a lot more mobile than when she first strolled onto the massage mat. 

I was chatting to her Mum arranging dates for the next visit when we noticed Poppy walking back and sitting on the massage mat. Down I went giving her a little extra before I left. I used the mat to show her Mum some appropriate exercises she can do to help with her balance and proprioception. Poppy then got off the mat while I folded it up for transport. As I was putting my shoes back on, Poppy returned to sit on the folded up massage mat. It took us 15 minutes for her to finally return to her usual bed. Her Mum repeated the original question “Is that normal behaviour for a dog?” My reply this time was “Erm…well…sometimes yes”. It is why I always prefer to massage dogs on a ‘special’ place like my massage mat and not in their own bed. It is a place they can associate with therapy whether it is from me or from their Mums and Dads. It is not the sleeping place, or the feeding place, or the petting place but the Therapy Place. Luther shows his displeasure at me leaving by remaining on the mat AND holding on to me. Ralph shows his displeasure at the end of a session by sitting on me so I can’t get up but when I do, he shuffles to the front door so I can’t actually get out of his house. Equally as persistent as little Poppy and equally endearing. 

Hopefully, with regular massage sessions from me, daily massage moments from her Mum, some gentle exercises to stretch out her back and rebalance her hips, Poppy will be able to manage her arthritis and have a better quality of life.

Granulomatous meningoencephalitis

Granulomatous meningoencephalitis – not a condition that rolls off the tongue. But in small breed female dogs between 6 months and 10 years of age, it is actually more common than it sounds which is why is it shortened to GME. It is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system and can affect a dog in a variety of ways depending on which part of the nervous system is affected. It also tends to show its symptoms very rapidly. 

Hattie’s Mum came home the other week to find her collapsed. A rush to the local vets resulted in a recommendation to Fitzpatrick Referrals (the Supervet) where the condition was diagnosed as “inflammatory disease of the nervous system of unidentified aetiology but most likely to be GEM” and treated with chemotherapy and prednisone. 

A couple of days after the chemo- and steroid therapy started to work, Hattie was getting better but her mobility was an issue, particularly along the right hand side and her front leg was displaying considerable paralysis. She was given some physiotherapy exercises and her Mum was advised that this needed to be continued daily. Which is where I came in. A round about referral from the Supervet via a recommendation from Paws, Play and Stay. 

I went over to visit Hattie at her home and, although she was bouncy and active, she was clearly ataxic as though she didn’t really know where her right limbs were. She bounded happily to greet me but decided that it was easier to talk to me sitting down, which is where I sat with her. She absolutely loved her massage immediately falling asleep purring – mind you, Mum is a massage therapist so she has had some Mum Therapy already. 

As you can see in the picture, her right front leg is held at an angle and she tends to knuckle with that paw. She does know where it is as, when I held it, she would press against me. And when we placed it correctly she would walk with it but then ‘forgot’ it was there. 

Hattie

With Hattie, the aim was all about rehabilitation and devising exercises she can do which will help her relearn where her right legs are so that she starts to use them again. Hattie loves her food, even more so now that she is on steroid medication. At the moment, she can’t afford to put on too much weight. An exercise routine for her had to be constructed that her Mum could do without using treats. Fortunately, we’ve got quite a portfolio of active exercises and it was a case of going through the ones which would benefit her condition and could be performed treat-less. We came up with about half a dozen. It doesn’t sound a lot, but these exercises, when performed with care and consideration, can be quite fun and not a chore for the dog and a little goes a long way toward rebuilding lasting rehabilitation. Add to that mix a few appropriate massage techniques and her muscles and joints should start to show some progress. 

Hopefully, when I return, she will be less wobbly and starting to walk with more confidence. 

Meet Miss Multimodal

Well…yes…I know…it is our Sarah but…there is a story behind this.

Since I started AchyPaw I’ve been an exponent of complementary therapy.  When Marion and Dan kindly came up with the suggestion of AchyPaw as the name of the new business, that seemed all encompassing.  It didn’t suggest we only worked on one issue or one technique but all sorts of aches and pains.  I could have called the business AchyPaw Remedial Massage, Myotherapy, Acupressure, Education, Exercise, Advice, Maintenance, Rehabilitation, service but that would that never have fitted on my tee shirt.  What we do is not a single technique based therapy but a multimodal approach. 

So what is the story?

A few months ago, our Sarah developed very sudden onset of idiopathic rear leg muscle wastage.  Of course she was getting daily massage but that didn’t seem to help.  We started to add more complementary therapies to the mix.  These all started with a visit to the vet of course.   

Our shopping list now reads :

1. Laser therapy.  Our vets, Coastway, had just started laser therapy.  We were one of the first to try it out.  Sarah now loves her Uncle Jay who zips and zaps her on all sorts of settings for 30 minutes.  We just think it is cool wearing the green laser-proof goggles.

2. Hydrotherapy. This is a new addition to the mix.  Sarah doesn’t really enjoy the stretching parts but loves the swimming with Auntie Kimberley at Coastway.  Three sessions in and the difference is beginning to show. She will never make the Doggy Olympics but she is a darn good paddler.

3. Massage.  Of course this has to be added.  Throughout the day I sit with her and work on this bit or that bit –  the bit of leg and shoulder that she is not lying on.  When I design a tailored massage routine for my clients, I try to make it short and do-able while being beneficial.  I know that if I give them a 60 minute routine, it won’t get done.  But make it 10 or 15 minutes and it will.  The same with Sarah – a little often seems to keep her happier.

4. Acupressure.  After my acupressure course there are a couple of really good acupoints that are guaranteed to make her sigh and relax.  She adores her gentle massage along the Bladder Meridian and then working on her BL40, BL60 and KI3 points.

5. Adjustments to daily living.  The house is already ‘foamed out’ with foam mattresses at places where they might just want to jump and crash land.  New memory foam beds.  Our lovely bamboo floor is now covered with IKEA carpet pieces – not chic but oh-so-much-more-comfy for slippy legs.  Food bowls are already raised off the floor so no back aching stooping down to eat or drink.  We’ve upped her glucosamine and chondroitin tablets which complement the turmeric and omega 3 she already gets.  In the garden there are hand-built steps to ease any jumping.  I think this is the true definition of a ‘dog friendly house’.

6.  Energy healing.  Sarah loves her visits from her Auntie Lou (of Touch of Reiki).  She just lies down and sleeps through the entire session with a big fat soppy grin.

7. Rehabilitation.  This is the latest addition.  She is now moving well enough to try a few exercises.  She can be a bit lazy (editors note : a bit!!!  That’s an understatement) so exercise has to be fun and stimulatory.  When I visit a dog client I always leave behind a personalised and tailored exercise plan.  I now had to devise one for myself.  Lou suggested that Sarah liked to walk over poles.  Instead of splashing out on expensive cavaletti poles, I searched around our shed and garage and found brooms….lots of brooms.  Who knew we had so many brooms?  It was almost as if we had bought them in advance for this purpose.  As shown in the pictures, our garden looks like a scene from a Harry Potter Quidditch game with all sorts of brooms on the grass.  We started with simple lines then added in large and small circles.  Add into that an ‘exercise slope’ (made out of an old car ramp) and we have our very own AchyPaw Sports Field.  And she loves it.  As soon as she hears me open the dried meat treat jar she is ready at the bottom of the exercise slope and prancing round the poles.

The moral of this story – adding several complementary therapies to the multimodal mix can be more powerful than a single therapy.

"Look Dad...I'm swimming"

 

Sarah copies Dad walking over the poles

How to turn 6 brooms into an exercise field

Sarah's Step and Sarah's Slope

Is that a piece of foam at the bottom of the stairs? No…that is a canine house adaptation.

The other week I noticed that there was a large piece of foam at the bottom of the stairs to Maddie’s house. I know that her Mums had put foam everywhere else plus bought a bed without legs after a “Well..Dr Les said…” moment but the foam at the bottom of the stairs was new. This was to help Maddie make the initial turn from the hall onto the stairwell and also just in case she should slip down one day. 

It made me think of all the little things we do, or can do, to adapt your house to benefit your dog and their mobility. 

When Sarah started to look at the 4 inch jump up into our back garden, Chris put on his carpentry hat and built some smaller steps. These are now known as Sarah’s Steps and she refuses to go into the back garden by any other method than up and down HER steps. Sam doesn’t get a look in…..I guess one day we’ll have to build some Sam Steps. But a couple of bits of old decking, a few screws and bingo…we have a canine mobility adaptation device. 

Kyto’s Mum covered up all her prize wooden flooring with rugs and carpet runners to stop his skittering across. This is the top way to keep your dog injury free according to Natalie Lenton of the Canine Massage Therapy Centre (http://www.k9-massageguild.co.uk/the-number-1-way-to-keep-your-dog-injury-free/). When we refurbished our house 9 years ago we had really lush bamboo flooring installed as it was eco-friendly or recycled or something feel-goody. Now….all is covered by grey Ikea rugs. But the last thing I would want is for any dog clients to slip as they come into my therapy room. 

Memory foam beds for dogs are another great idea. I have lost count of how many new beds we have bought our spoilt pair over the past 10 years as the old one starts to lose it’s ‘memory-ness’. We’ve now found that you can buy really cheap offcuts online and put them inside a posh cover. The dogs don’t know any different from the really expensive ones some of the stores sell. They are just happy being comfy. 

Telephone directories! Now who uses them anymore? Well…I recommend their use to help raise the feeding bowl or water bowl if a dog seems to have difficulty stretching down. Again, cheap as chips to help adapt the home environment to help your dog. 

Keeping the dog’s weight under control is possibly a bit harder but can have dramatic effects on arthritis and other issues. Some years back we took our two for a routine vet visit where they were weighed. The vet said that Sarah was slightly…..portly. I took that to mean as a polite way to say she was fat. Over the next few weeks I reduced her food intake by just a few grams each time and she lost 4 kgs in 6 months. I admit she has put her winter weight back again a little and she is now on reduced intake. It is so little though that she really doesn’t know…..well…she does but her tummy doesn’t rumble at least. 

The owners of my lovely Mary have a clever rear end harness for her to help her stand which makes it possible now for her to get out into the garden and even walk along the road where all the neighbours come out to see how she is. But instead of an expensive one, you can always use a towel under their body to support their weight. 

Look around your house and see what things you have done, probably without thinking about it, to help your dog maintain their quality of life by helping ease their mobility. I’m sure it will more than you think.

Cani Sports Sussex and Canine Massage Therapy

Cani Sports includes running, racing and biking with a dog, done in a controlled way. It includes CaniCross running (typically done cross country) and Bike-Jor. 

Cani Sports Sussex, run by Gary Moxon, is based at Paws, Play & Stay Dog Hotel & Day Centre, Rustington and is involved with Sportswear, Sports instruction and Personal training. Gary manages the fitness and working dog side of Paws, Play & Stay the business, is experienced in handling and working sled dogs in harness, and teaching one to one or group running sessions for you and your canine friend. With a competitive nature he was always seeking to enjoy his time running with dogs so it became a natural progression to run with his first Siberian Husky, Tex. After a lot of research and self-taught training they competed at their first Cani Cross race in 2010. Since those early days the Moxon pack has grown and so has the family participation in Cani Sports including scooting and bikejoring. Gary competed for team GB in the 2012 CaniX European Championships placing 12th in Europe. He believes the physiological well-being of working dogs is also paramount.

In Cani Sports, the dog wears a running harness while their human runner/biker wears a belt designed for the purpose. Cani Sports Sussex recommends and supplies Non-Stop Dog Wear. It is important that the harness fits the dog in the right places as badly fitted harnesses can cause poor mobility, the dog should not be restricted in the shoulder area, neck and rib cage so that they have freedom of movement and can breathe easily and fully while running with you. An ill-fitting harness can cause injury and discomfort for your dog and can hinder their mobility. Paws Play & Stay offer a complimentary fitting to ensure the correct sizes and fitting for each individual dog. 

Just like their owners, dogs suffer from muscle pains, aches and strains but they can't easily tell us that they have a sore shoulder or that their knee is stiff. They usually don't complain and tend to adapt to move around the problem carrying on with the most important job of being your best friend and fellow athlete. It is easy to spot if your dog is lame or limping, but there are more subtle indicators of injury such as reluctance to participate in the sport/activity (but again, your best friend athlete may well run through the pain to please you), stiffness when they get up after lying down, twitching or quivering down the back when you touch or stroke them (not always in the place where you are touching). In the worst case they could appear sad or depressed. 

Additionally dogs tend to have two speeds, zero and 100. They don’t stretch before an activity or run, they don’t warm up. This means it is easy for them to pick up an injury. This is where you can help. If you do notice a change in their behaviour or the way they walk, professional canine remedial massage and myotherapy can help to ease any problems to bring noticeable and positive changes in your dog. But most important of all, is learning how to give your dog a warm-up and cool-down massage routine before and after the sport. It should only take 5 to 10 minutes to do this, but can add years on to the athletic life of your dog. 

Warming your dog up beforehand can help to warm muscles and reduce the risk of injury. If you imagine a muscle is like an elastic band, when it is cold it can easily overstretch and tear or even break. (Try putting an elastic band in the fridge for an hour and see the difference between that and a warm one!). You certainly don’t that to happen to your dog. 

Other benefits of warming-up your dog before sports include:

• Loosens joints
• Prepares muscle fibres
• Allows increased stretch
• Allows greater contraction
• Encourages elasticity and contractibility
• Increases circulation so increases oxygenation which means the muscles can work for longer without going into anaerobic conditions with toxic build-up 

When a human runner, whether sprinter or marathon runner, has finished their race, they rarely just stop and get into the back of a taxi (in your case – your car!). They tend to include stretching and cool down routines. In a dog, this is similar but slower than a warm-up routine. 

Benefits of a cool-down routine include : 

• Relaxing & soothing
• Keeps the blood circulation flowing to nourish the muscles and tissues
• Gets rid of waste products
• Speeds up the body’s natural healing process

Preventing any injury in the first place is clearly far better than treating afterwards. Canine massage therapy, warm-up and cool-down routines could not only help to prevent injury by finding a problem before it becomes a problem but can also enhance and extend performance.  

Contact me via the achypaw.com website if you are interested in learning how to perform a warm-up / cool-down massage routine or if you have any questions about the mobility of your dog.  To learn more about Cani Sports, contact Gary via the Paws, Play & Stay reception.