Massage benefits dogs of every age:
~For new additions to the family, it can help with the bonding process through association of positive touch. It can also help with training-using the positive touch as a reward, but also helping promote relaxation to reduce stress in new and unfamiliar settings.
~For those adolescent/adult dogs, massage can be hugely beneficial to the dogs body as it matures and grows. It can help take the pain out of “growing pains”, and will keep the active dog healthy. Massage can help prevent injuries from occurring in the first place, but should an accident. Injury or illness happen, it can promote faster healing, and a faster return to normal activity.
~And for our golden seniors, Massage’s benefits can be most important. Massage can keep our older dogs limber and comfortable. By decreasing the dogs pain, one may also be able to decrease the amount of pain medication needed. By helping the body work at its best though all systems, Massage can promote overall well-being and quality of life.
And although there is a seperate page for "Canine Athletes", please remember that unless your dog is older, injured or ill they are probably playing pretty hard! Please see this page for tips on how massage can help keep your dog healthy during his or her playful years. Whether your dog is a swimmer, ball or frisbee chaser or dog park runner, massage can benefit all canine athletes!
Massage can also be very helpful with your dogs healing process should they become ill or injured. If your Heart-dog is going through a period of illness or injury, or is now recovering from one, please call us to see how massage may be able to help your dogs body through the amazing process of healing.
“…for rubbing (massage) can bind a joint that is too loose, and loosen a joint that is too rigid.
-Hippocrates, The "Father of Modern Medicine"
Here are some of the benefits of massage on individual systems throughout your dogs body:
Cardiovascular System: depending on the techniques, pressure and speed used, a massage can be either relaxing or invigorating. Massage can both lower and increase your dogs heart and pulse rate depending on which type of massage the dog is receiving; this can be helpful if you are trying to calm and relax your dog who is a "worrier" or trying to rev up your dog at a sporting event. In either case, the other benefits you will see is an increase in stroke volume (how much blood your dogs heart pushes through-the higher the volume, the better the heart is working), a decrease in blood pressure and increase in healthy cells that travel through the blood (red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets).*
Digestive System: by stimulating blood flow to the digestive system, massage can relieve gas, relieve constipation and promote healthy digestion.*
Endocrine System: massage can help increase the "good" hormones and decrease the "bad" ones. The good hormones are dopamine, which decreases stress and depression and serotonin which decreases stress, depression and pain. A bad hormone is cortisol, which is associated with an increase in stress and a decrease in the health of the immune system.*
Muscular System: when your dogs muscles are massaged, they can relax. Relaxation of muscles do not mean that they are flaccid and weak, but just the opposite. The muscles are allowed to become less tense, which decreases trigger points (pain points), decreases spasms and allows the muscles to have greater flexibility. A relaxed muscle means that the muscle can stretch to its maximum healthy length. When a muscle can stretch to its healthiest capability, it allows for greater range of motion and freer movement.*
Nervous System: massage is a great way to reduce pain that an be associated with trauma, injury or damaged nerves. It can interrupt the "pain pathways", and by decreasing pain, you may also be able to decrease the amount of pain medications needed. If there has been damage to nerves in your dogs body, there may also be atrophy of the muscles involved as well. Massage can help tone those muscle affected, and can help "refire" the nerves that have been damaged.*
Reproductive System: by relaxing a dog before breeding, there may be an increase in the success that the breeding will take. Also, pregnancy can put a huge amount of strain on a bitches body. Did you know that it takes at least 8 weeks after whelping for the abdominal muscles to effectively stabilize the pelvis and protect the spine? By having her massaged both during and after the pregnancy, some muscle strength can be retained and the healing time may be lessened; also pain in the back and pelvis can be decreased. (Massage can also be used on puppies! Starting from day one, gentle massage techniques can help puppies develop healthier, improve all systems, and help them grow into happy, well rounded adult Heart Dogs!)*
Respiratory System: massage has been used to help respiratory function in people for many years. When I had open heart surgery in 1989, it was used to help decrease the amount of fluid accumulating in my lungs. It still has this use today. Depending on the techniques used, massage can help decrease the amount of fluid that accumulates and remove any that does, decrease the frequency and severity of respiratory attacks (due to lar-par, reverse sneezing, etc.) and decreases dyspnea (shortness of breath).*
Skeletal System: massage can also help your dogs bones and joints. When blood flow is increased throughout the body, it increases the amount of nutrition to the bones which allows them greater mineral retention. It also allows for faster healing time for bones that are damaged due to fracture, trauma or surgery. Your dogs joints also benefit from the increase of blood flow. The cartilage that make up the joints have a very limited nutrient supply. When certain techniques are used, the blood flow (and nutrition) will increase, keeping the joints fluid, healthy and flexible.*
Skin (integumentary) System: massage can help improve your dogs skin quality and condition. By improving the blood flow to the skin, massage can reduce ischemia (tissue with a decrease in blood supply), stimulate sebaceous glands (which produce healthy skin-oils) and help soften and decrease scar tissue.*
Urinary System: massage can help increase both urinary output, and the amount of waste contained in the urine. The more waste removed, the healthier the body. Increased blood flow to the kidneys can allow them to function at a healthier state. (note: many dogs will need to potty after having massage!)*
*Please see "Your Dogs Appointment" to see contraindications for massage
Golden days
10 years ago
