Specialists conduct equipment-free floor exercises but also use a variety of tools including balance balls, inflatable disks, underwater treadmill therapies, hyperbaric chambers, acupuncture, and lasers. The goal is to strengthen muscles, provide pain relief, and help a pet enjoy life without relying on medications heavily or at all.
One of Vitucci's favorite success stories involved an 11-year-old black Lab named Lillie. "When I had my first appointment with her, she was so weak they were using a sling to bring her into the exam room. For a couple of months, she had barely walked unassisted." Vitucci recalled talking to the owners and preparing them for a poor outcome. Fortunately, Lillie responded to treatment much better than expected and the results were slow but ultimately satisfying.
"When we started, all we could do was put her in the underwater treadmill, let her stay in it, and then drain it after three minutes because she started to fall," Vitucci says. "She came to me once a week and we couldn't turn the treadmill on for six visits. But eventually that changed. Now, two years later, she goes on half-mile walks twice a day with her owners. They're so happy."
Rehab works with other pain management treatment
Rehab therapies can also be used together with drugs and natural supplements, or they can reduce the need for medicines with unwelcome side effects. When Vitucci saw that she could give owners another option to help their pets outside of heavy medication or euthanasia, the experience changed her perspective on rehab's potential.
She noted the approach is not always simple or easy and, just as with human rehabilitation, progress does not happen in the therapy room alone. True success requires a partnership between a practitioner and a pet's owners to maintain follow-up exercise between appointments and to stay open to other therapies that complement what happens during in-office sessions.
Vitucci credits Lillie's dedicated owners, who were willing to work outside of weekly therapies. As part of their work between sessions, they conducted follow-up exercises as simple as encouraging her to move toward her food. They also agreed to carefully chosen medications including a joint supplement and gabapentin.
In his Florida practice, Turkell offers a range of rehab therapies for patients. In addition to oxygen therapy in a hyperbaric chamber, he encourages clients to consider hydrotherapy for their pets and maintains a full aquatics center on site. He also educates clients on the benefits of both acupuncture and cold laser therapy treatment.
Rehab resources |
Below is a list of resources for providers who are seeking to enhance their knowledge of canine rehabilitative therapies or who want to become certified themselves. These organizations offer practice certification for a range of position levels.
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