Ask K9DogMan

“The only reason a pet starts to move in ways that are ‘not normal’ is because it hurts them to move normally. Bit by bit pets will change the way they move to avoid pain and because you see your pets every day it’s hard to notice the little changes happening over time.

Dogs in particular have such a high pain tolerance that they won’t show obvious symptoms until the pain is too much which means they’ve likely had the problem for a good while. They’ll put up with these problems without you being able to notice because they are pack animals and are reluctant to show weakness. So they’ll soldier on symptom-free until something triggers the pain in a big way such as vigorous play or a hard winter and by the time symptoms become obvious they it’s only because changing the way they move isn’t enough to avoid the pain.

It might seem like it just happened suddenly but generally it’s the case that your pet has been out of alignment for quite some time.

Muscle wastage in the limbs is another symptom of not moving/walking properly for a long time. Usually this is because there are pinched nerves in the back preventing an animal from reaching as far forward with their front legs or pushing back with their rear legs as much as they would normally be able to.”

“Animals suffer from pain associated with pinched nerves when they are out of alignment. Particular movements will trigger muscle spasm to protect the nerves which hurts making life very uncomfortable and which explains any yelping or strange movements you may have observed. Your pet will learn new ways to move to avoid this pain.”

“Secondary issues can arise such as cruciate ligament problems, and symptoms will continue to worsen if nothing changes in yours and your pet’s life and it will take longer to fix your pet when it finally receives treatment.”

“Yes. Inflammation from pinched nerves may subside after rest and your pet may become more mobile then if they exercise without the nerves being released by an animal chiropractor the symptoms will reoccur.”

“You’re not going to be able to easily identify exactly where it hurts or pinpoint the source of your pet’s pain poking them and moving them around. I don’t recommend even trying or it’s likely you can be bitten or cause more problems and discomfort for your pet.”

“Once upon a time these problems were never heard of. This was back when our pets were out in the backyard all the time. Since then our pets have evolved to become more a part of our family and now live inside our homes. But our homes are built for people with 2 legs and are not very good for our 4 legged friends.

Slippery floors, stairs, as well other changes in pet world are to blame such as off leash dog parks, modern collars/harnesses/halty contraptions, and doggy doors.

Some dogs are out of alignment since birth from their mum stepping on them in the litter and issues with movement and composition are often overlooked by professionals. Other events could be the reason for a sudden decline in your pets health like rough play or another pet jumping on them, falling off something or jumping and landing badly, slipping over etc. None of these things cause problems for animals that have been in alignment their whole life because they have muscles that are built up properly to hold their own bones in place which will be the case for your pet once they have been in alignment for a period of time.”

“With an animal that is out of alignment a good animal chiropractor can gently manipulate them to release pinched nerves at which time their muscle spasm and any rigidness in their body will disappear, their pain will cease and their normal movement and temperament will return. Without the nerves being released this cannot happen and nothing else will work.”

“Regardless of other issues it’s a good idea to have your pet adjusted to ensure that being out of alignment and having pinched nerves is not contributing to other identified issues. It’s also good to remember that your pet needs to be in alignment for their immune system to function optimally for better overall health.

The results I achieve will benefit your pet regardless of other issues which are usually already identified such as joint problems, arthritis, displaysia, and other x-ray determinations. In particular a lot of dogs I’ve seen have arthritis or hip and elbow displaysia but it wasn’t these things causing lameness, it was being out of alignment that contributed to most of their symptoms.

I’ve treated a range of ailments such as dogs that have severe displaysia, arthritis, other bone and joint issues, cruciate ligament problems, undiagnosed problems said to require MRI scans etc, and all have fully recovered and gone on to live full happy healthy lives without needing what was recommended in the first place, but every situation is different.”

“I never sell or administer drugs or other pharmaceutical products. If you need medication please see your vet. Pain killers and anti-inflamatories only mask the problem and do not address the cause which ultimately will not go away on its own or by just giving drugs to your pet. Drugs will never completely fix any problem. Anti-inflammatories and pain killers are not the complete solution or the best way to help your pet but they may help alleviate pain for them while you’re waiting for me to get to you.”

“By itself rest does not address the cause of these types of problems or their associated symptoms. I’ve often seen pets that have been rested to fix issues coming out of that resting period worse off! Symptoms may get slightly better for a little while due to a reduction in inflammation but they’ll quickly return because the cause of the problems cannot be eliminated by rest alone. I don’t advise to just crate rest your pet like others do because it won’t help them rehabilitate if they want to move around naturally.”

“It is important to let your animal rest until I can get to them. Dogs in particular are their own worst enemy and just want to go go go regardless of their problems.

For example, let’s say your dog has pinched nerves and you mention going for a ‘w-a-l-k’ or throwing around the ‘b-a-l-l’. Your dog becomes instantly excited and flooded with with adrenalin and instead of restricting movement your dog can now push through the pain barrier of muscle spasm to run full stretch. Muscles will still spasm because of pinched nerves but eventually something has to give and usually it’s a tearing of the cruciate ligament which I see most commonly.

This can all be avoided if your dog is put into alignment and stays that way.”

“My treatments work well in conjunction with vet advice which you should always follow. Many vets and vet specialists have been referring their clients to me for years. I’m not a vetinarian and I can’t give you advice that isn’t related to the work which I solely perform. If I attend your animal and I believe your pet has a problem that is not in my line of expertise I’ll be recommending you to take your animal to a vet ASAP.”

“Swimming, massage, physio and other practices/treatments simply will not work unless your pet is in complete alignment. Think about it. If for example your dog’s movement is restricted by pain caused by pinched nerves and you take them to hydro therapy or go swimming then when your dog moves with full range it will cause pain. Then of course muscles will spasm causing a lot of discomfort and symptoms will flare up. Also do not massage your pet or use a heat pack wherever they appear sore until their pinched nerves are released.

Once pinched nerves are released and your dog has gone through the healing process which will vary in duration depending on how bad they are and how long they’ve been living with pinched nerves, they will regain full movement and be able to move, walk, and swim properly. Then they will benefit from other therapies because their muscles are working fully.”

“Before initiating any program of care I will diagnose and determine the full scope of the problems by observing gait, movement, stance, composition, demeanour, as well as any information you provide about your animal and their history.

Treatments will include full body chiropractic adjustments to release pinched nerves (not just one body part like others do – this is important because they are all connected), laser acupuncture, magnetic therapy pulse machines and the application of anti-inflammatory cooling gel (if required) all to help reduce inflammation and increase blood flow. I am also a Reiki Master and spiritual healer with unique psychic and intuitive healing ability. I will do absolutely everything that is required to be done within my skill set to fix your pet in the shortest possible time and to get the best possible results.”

“The amount of care needed varies from animal to animal but basically the longer an animal has had an alignment problem, the older the animal is, and the more unfit and out condition it may be the longer the duration of care that’s required.

With dogs there are 3 layers of nerves. By the time symptoms become obvious the issues needing to be addressed are in the deeper layers and not just on the surface. After one treatment a reduction in symptoms will be obvious however to ensure all problems are fixed and the symptoms don’t quickly return it’s wise to have at least 3 treatments to deal with problems at every layer. Then if there is a problem later in life it will then take less treatments at that time to fix. All animals are different but there has been not one dog, regardless of age or verdicts etc that I haven’t managed to get walking well again. I’ve even treated a 12 year old german shepherd that was half paralysed dragging itself around by it’s front legs and getting worse every day. After one treatment he was up on his back legs again walking around.

I’ll be able to diagnose your dog’s issues and advise you on the recommended number of treatments required at the time of an appointment once I’ve seen your dog in person.”