Tag Archive for: veterinary rehabilitation

Animal physiotherapy is a group of therapies and techniques that help us accelerate the rehabilitation of our friends. Recommended for a wide variety of injuries and pathologies, it is becoming a great ally for recovery.

What is physiotherapy for animals

As for humans, physiotherapy for animals is a technique that serves both for the prevention of injuries and for the rehabilitation of them. In addition, due to the wide variety of options, it is able to treat different musculoskeletal pathologies.

It has been shown that physiotherapy in animals is able to cure various conditions. With the reduction of pain, inflammation and swelling, the body is more prepared to rebuild muscle strength and thus regain lost mobility. The recovery process is reduced when these therapies are used.

Physiotherapy for animals is aimed at three different categories. On the one hand, small animals, such as dogs and cats. Secondly, large animals, such as horses. Finally, exotic animals, such as those who participate in circuses or who live locked up in zoos, in which their physical condition is seriously damaged.

Benefits of physiotherapy for animals

Physiotherapy for animals should be carried out when indicated by a veterinarian. It is a complementary therapy that needs to be supervised. Some of the benefits obtained with this treatment are the following:

  • Improved quality of life when mobility has been lost due to some type of injury or degenerative disease

  • Slowing down of the processes that damage and degenerate the musculature and bone structure of the animal. Also helps treat muscle spasms

  • Increased performance and improved treatment for musculoskeletal injuries

  • Improved energy and vitality

  • Reduction of pain in muscles, tendons, ligaments and joints that have suffered ruptures and optimization of fracture repair

fisioterapia para animales

How are the physiotherapy sessions in animals

Physiotherapy in animals covers different treatments. The duration of these sessions is between an hour and an hour and a half depending on the technique used. These can be passive or active depending on the objective we have.

One of the techniques used is massage. In addition to reducing muscle tension and pain, endorphins are released and stress is reduced. Physiotherapy in animals not only improves physical condition, but also helps the emotional picture.

Hydrotherapy is also very common for those animals with joint problems. Since in water we do not carry the weight of the body, this type of physiotherapy for animals is indicated for those whose muscles or bone structure is weakened. The rehabilitator will be in charge of assessing the modality of the swim, the intensity and the time.

Laser therapy or ultrasound are also very often used for the treatment of pathologies. The intensity and depth at which you work will always depend on the degree of the disease and should always be supervised by a rehabilitator.

Physiotherapy for animals as part of rehabilitation can greatly improve our friend’s recovery process. In our store, you can find massagers and hot and cold therapies that will help you achieve these goals.

Increasingly, physiotherapy and rehabilitation are being established as one of the basic pillars in veterinary traumatology and neurology.

While good diagnosis and surgical or pharmacological treatment are critical, rehabilitation can really make all the difference.

The structures of the musculoskeletal system are closely related to each other. The inactivity or poor function of one severely affects the others.

Pelota-cacahuete RehabilitaciónLet’s take a frequent example: hip dysplasia. This is an incongruity of the hip joint, in which bone, cartilage, joint capsule, synovial fluid and ligaments are affected.

The moment the dog feels pain, it lowers its activity drastically. This causes a loss of muscle mass around the joint. As a result, the joint will be less “embraced” by the muscles, increasingly weak and with less force. Then the joint will be more unstable, causing more osteoarthritis (which in turn will increase the pain, which will further lower the activity of the animal). As you can see, it is a vicious circle from which it seems very difficult to escape. The key is to re-exercise those muscles. A possible solution is the use of a wheelchair: these support most of the weight of the animal, but allowing it to exercise the hind limbs. For very advanced cases in which the animal can no longer move the limbs, there is the option of electrotherapy, which will allow us to make passive movements of the muscles. There are even electrotherapy terminals for home use.

When our dog has a musculoskeletal or nervous problem, it is very important that we ask the veterinarian what is the appropriate activity at each stage of the disease.

Here we leave you with a video where the importance (and the wonderful consequences) of a gentle and constant rehabilitation is demonstrated:

Material para rehabilitación veterinaria