Our Services
What We Do
Canine Rehab Therapy (CRT) is similar to physical therapy in that Canine Rehabilitation Therapists perform full body biomechanical evaluations, using palpation skills to assess muscles and joints to determine the cause of your dog's pain or dysfunction. We then develop an appropriate treatment plan, often teaching the owners how to treat the dogs so they can continue the healing with ongoing treatments at home.
Most of us have heard of physical therapy (PT) and have a vague idea of how it works. After a thorough evaluation of a patient's biomechanics and movement patterns, a physical therapist uses a range of techniques and modalities (treatments) to boost recovery. Perhaps you have had a friend who went through PT after a surgery or to treat an injury who reported marked improvement after several visits. Now our four legged friends can enjoy the same benefits, as CRT allows us to apply this knowledge and these skills to canines.
The Benefits of CRT
- Maintaining and improving mobility in the aging dog
- Faster and safer recovery from injury or surgery
- Improved mobility and ease of movement
- Increased joint flexibility and joint health
- Agility training and injury prevention
- Increased functional strength
- Minimal side-effects
- YOU can continue many of the therapies at home!
We Specialize in Treating
Dogs especially helped by Canine Rehabilitation Therapy (CRT) include:
Surgical patients - After a shoulder, knee or hip surgery, CRT can help the dog heal faster and better. At the CRT visit, the owner can learn a few stretches and exercises and after a couple of visits, the owner and dog can continue on their own.
Chronic lameness: CRT can greatly help with chronic lameness or limping. CRT therapists' training in biomechanics and gait, along with information from your veterinarian, can help identify the underlying cause of the lameness and treat it effectively.
Our Geriatric 'Bingo Club': Senior dogs especially benefit from CRT. Although affecting the underlying tissue is not always possible, as with hip arthritis, CRT therapists can release the muscles that are guarding the joint, maintain and improve mobility, and decrease pain. This allows the dog to get up and down and move around with more ease and enhance their quality of life.
What other canine issues does CRT help?
- Dogs with mild to severe physical challenges or injuries
- Arthritis, muscle and joint issues
- Injury prevention in canine athletes
- Hospice care
Interventions/tools/modalities
- Cold Laser or Low Level Laser (low power lasers)
- Electrical stimulation
- Trigger point dry needling (Utilizing fine needles to release muscle tension based on Western medical research and principles. Learn more here)
- Manual therapy: including massage type soft tissue work, traction techniques, passive range of motion stretches and chiropractic-like joint mobilizations for flexibility.
- Therapeutic exercise including:
- Gait training and post operative weightbearing exercises
- Proprioception (sense of knowing where a body part is in space) and balance exercises
- Strengthening exercises
- Speed work and agility for injury prevention
- Core stabilization
- Gait training and post operative weightbearing exercises
The ongoing research and evidence of Canine Rehabilitation Therapy's effectiveness continues to grow. We will post links to various studies here if you are interested in learning more.
