Osteoarthritis will affect most of our dogs sometime in their lifetime. While many of us consider the pain from arthritis as mostly coming from the changes to the bone and the cartilage within the arthritic joint itself, there are other reasons why a dog with arthritis has pain.
As changes are happening at the joint level there can be other changes happening in the body as well:
- The nerves carrying the pain signals to the brain become more sensitive and send MORE signals to the brain (i.e. the pain gets worse even though there is not more damage present)
- The inflammation in the joint irritates the lining of the joint and the soft tissues around it
- Other joints in the body start to take more load and so other muscles and joints can start to become painful as well
What can physio do to help a dog with arthritis?
Identify where your dog actually has pain.
So often we hear from owners that say, “I just want to know how much my dog hurts.” Knowing that x, y, z is painful is really key for addressing the right issues. It helps guide our treatment!
Reduce pain
No surprise here! We want to reduce the pain that we find. However, physio goes about it in a different way than veterinary medicine. Here’s a few ways we can help your dog’s pain:
- Manual therapies – Techniques like massage and joint mobilization can relieve muscle tension and enhance joint function
- Therapeutic exercises – bodies were made to move! Doing the right exercises can help restore blood flow to an area, move irritating waste (like swelling) and reduce those nerve signals going to the brain (aka. Pain modulation)
- Laser therapy – cold laser therapy helps by reducing inflammation, stimulating repair and reducing pain signals
- Working with your veterinarian – surprised? You shouldn’t be. Pain medications are important and often necessary. In other words, it’s cruel to let your dog be in significant pain. The goal of rehab is to decrease pain and when that happens, your vet should be involved to help taper or reduce medications safely.
Improve muscle strength and function
Many of us tend to get hyper focused on pain relief and neglect to consider what has happened in terms of muscle loss and or changes in the way a dog uses its body. No pain medication or supplement is going to independently increase muscle again! If that were the case, gyms would probably go out of business.
By helping your dog increase their muscle strength their joints will have more support AND they’ll have an easier time getting up from the ground, doing stairs and going for walks.
Is walking enough? Probably not! If it was, most dogs wouldn’t have any issues. Physio can help tailor a program that is specific to the needs of your dog so they are gaining muscle where they need it. We also have an eye for proper form and function. Do any of these things sound familiar?
- My dog stands with it’s hind feet more more under their hips than behind their body
- My dog looks like they are pulling with their front legs to get up from the floor
- My dog can’t sit square or tight anymore
If you relate to any of these things, your dog may benefit from physio.
Lifestyle Changes
There are lots of things that help dogs with osteoarthritis manage their days with more ease. This can include things like rugs, joint supplements or weight loss. Rehab can help determine what changes might benefit your dog best!
