Dog Massage Therapy

Canine Massage Therapy

Canine Massage has many benefits. It can be used to rehabilitate your dog from injury, relieve discomfort, stiffness, lameness and help restore mobility. The aim is to promote the relaxation of tight, inflexible muscles, to improve their elasticity and range of movement (ROM). In addition massage can help dogs to cope with orthopaedic issues, such as arthritis, hip dysplasia. Canine Massage is a clinical therapy used to support and resolve issues in your dog’s muscular system that may be having a detrimental effect on their mobility, mood and quality of life. The muscular system can house a vast range of painful issues and injuries and as dogs are not able to tell us they are in pain, these issues can go overlooked. Massage is a unique, strong, manipulative treatment for dogs and works by releasing tight, sore muscles, removing debilitating trigger points (or knots) that can cause referred pain and helps to break down restrictive scar tissue. Alongside its natural benefits, massage therapy can also work well alongside pharmaceutical pain relief enabling the therapist to work deeper and ask more of the muscles and joints with the support of anti-inflammatory medication. Canine Massage is an holistic, hands-on therapy that involves the manipulation of the soft tissue structures of the body to prevent and alleviate pain, discomfort, muscle spasms, and stress rather than masking the issues with analgesics. It gives 100% drug-free pain relief. ‘Holistic’ means that the whole body is treated rather than just the injured spot. Often there is referred pain from the primary area of injury to another part of the body – the secondary area. For example, if your dog is limping on his right front leg, he may compensate by putting extra strain on the left lower back muscles.Touch is vital for humans and animals – soft, soothing strokes warm and relax muscles; deeper manipulations work on specific injuries within the muscles and soft tissues. This can sometimes be painful for your dog, but any uncomfortable manipulation of soft tissues will be followed by soft flowing strokes to soothe and relax again. Massage techniques include: Effleurage, Petrissage, kneading, Tapotement, Trigger point therapy, Friction, Passive and active stretches. Massage benefits:Relieve muscular tension, spasms and painReduce trigger point formationReduce scar tissueIncrease range of motionImprove tone in weak musclesRelieve intestinal gas and aid in digestionInterrupt the pain cycle by activating sensory receptorsIncrease circulationIncrease lymphatic circulation and immunityDecrease blood pressure and reduce heart rateCalm animals – massage increases dopamine and serotonin levels and is linked to decreased stress levels. Treatment includes a gait analysis checking how the dog moves, sitting and standing positions Consultation: questions regarding your dog's diet, exercise, lifestyle, Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) medical history and why you are bringing them for massage.

Palpation: Good way of getting your dog used to being handled by me as I feel for areas of Tenderness, Texture, Temperature and Tone (known as the 4Ts). I will be able to identify injury, scarring, trigger points, temperature changes as well as any muscle wastage. I will perform this whilst your dog is standing up and just prior to the massage. However this can also be done when your dog is lying down if they prefer. Full body massage After Care Advice Massage works well with hydrotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractor