Pet rehabilitation is a growing science that recognizes that dogs, like people, can benefit from a specialized exercise regimen and other therapeutic methods that reduce pain, enhance fitness, and restore functioning. It is founded on the same concepts as human physiotherapy: to recover, maintain, and maximize strength, movement, function, and overall well-being. There is a strong emphasis on examination, diagnosis, evaluation, and physical interventions. It also values the relationships between the animal, the owner, the veterinarian, and other animal health care providers.
What exactly is pet rehabilitation?
Stretching, massage, neuromuscular electrical stimulation, ultrasound or therapeutic laser, and home exercise programs may be employed in your pet’s therapy plan. Not all therapies are appropriate for pets, and your companion will receive a customized rehabilitation plan. Pet Rehabilitation can also be combined with acupuncture, dietary counseling, and pain management techniques to ensure your pet has the best possible quality of life.
What to expect?
Veterinary rehabilitation services are commonly tolerated and even enjoyed by the majority of pets. To help your pet through the sessions, specialists employ a variety of kinds of positive reinforcement. The first step is to examine your pet’s particular motion constraints. The diagnostic and treatment plan will be tailored to your pet’s specific needs and physical abilities or limits. Treatment will often comprise a combination of manual therapy, therapeutic modalities, and exercise.
Exercises
Cavaletti poles, rocker boards, physio rolls, weave poles, dog grooming services and balancing discs will be used by qualified specialists. They will also teach your pet new movements such as high fives, sitting to standing, play bows, and many others.
While the vet is treating your pet at the clinic, they will send you home with instructions for additional exercises, stretches, or heat/cold therapy treatments. These exercises will improve your range of motion as well as your strength and endurance within that range.
This will be a collection of tools that you can use now and in the future to support your pet. Along with increases in comfort, strength, and ability around the initially injured area, the trainers are ultimately working towards retraining the neuromuscular firing of the muscles utilized in your pet’s stride to assist them in avoiding re-injury in the future.
Medications
Many patients are likely already on anti-inflammatories, the most often used pain reliever. The major goal, however, is to lessen reliance on these drugs. The skilled emergency animal clinic professionals will also regularly utilize muscle relaxants to soothe a spasming muscle, centrally acting pain medications, and heat or cold packs; these can significantly lessen your pet’s pain and reduce the need for anti-inflammatories.
Nervous patients may benefit from anti-anxiety medicine. Massage therapy demands a relaxed patient, and most pets are happily following a short exercise regimen and relaxing for a massage within a session or two. Please do not give any human medication to your pet unless your veterinarian has given you a specific dose and brand information.
Conclusion
Many vets provide physical rehabilitation for cats and dogs. Pet rehabilitation treats a wide range of injuries, orthopedic ailments, and neurological problems in pets. Pet therapy can improve mobility, reduce pain, improve motor function, and hasten post-operative recuperation. A trained rehabilitation team will use various strategies to ensure that your pet obtains the most benefits possible.