I Was Skeptical About Doggie Chiropractics...

[a_daerr]

But I think I'm a believer! Henry got his first adjustment today and has been running around the house like a nutcase. He's pulling toys out and flipping them up in the air. Anyone else want to share their experiences with chiro?

[gryhnd_adoptee]

Yes...canine chiros are awesome! My girls get adjusted every three months on average, more if warranted. Their whole demeanor changes after adjustments. They are happier, bouncier, and more alert. They have been getting adjustments for a couple years now.

 

Our canine chiro is also a Reiki Master

[Feisty49]

Did your dogs have an obvious sign that an adjustment was necessary? Chiropractic adjustments work on humans so it makes sense to me they would work on a dog. I'm just wondering if an older dog, even without obvious issues, would benefit from treatment. Annie is 7-1/2 and has slowed down a lot.. a lot lot. I've been putting it down to aging. She does have arthritis in her spine and is on Vetprofit for it, but I wonder if there are other issues.

[KF_in_Georgia]

My old boy Sam had one good visit, one very bad one (GSOD and he nearly went for the chiropractor). And he was in a lot of pain again very soon after that second visit. (It took longer to get an appointment with the chiropractor than any good effects lasted.) After that second visit, we stuck with meds (gabapentin, methocarbamol, tramadol; no NSAIDs after he developed an ulcer).

 

If Henry is doing well, I'm happy for you both. Just be sure you keep pain meds on hand. The effects of Sam's two adjustments wore off on a Friday night, and he stood and panted rather than trying to lie down. First time, I didn't have pain meds on hand; second time I did and it made a huge difference.

 

Henry's adjustments probably will go well. He's probably experiencing back pain as a result of altered movement from the amputation. Sam actually had back trouble rather than back strain, so adjustments weren't as useful for Sam.

[Hubcitypam]

Most on here know I'll never go back to a dog chiropractor.

 

I took Rex twice. The man was carefully vetted, pardon the pun. I made sure the man was AVCA certified and on top of that the was both a DMV AND an instructor at the chiro college here. Both times he caused Rex so much pain that gentle Rex tried to bite him and had to be muzzled. He showed no improvement after either time and I wasn't going to put him through that again.

After that ordeal I told my regular vet and he said "I wish that you'd asked me. I'd have suggested acupuncture - unlike chiro it has a proven clinical track record".

Edited May 6, 2015 by Hubcitypam

[galgrey]

I've been pleased with the results of chiropractic adjustment for my dogs over the years.

[cleptogrey]

yes, felix and i use the same chiropractor! i do exactly what henry does, felix takes a couple of days to adjust to the change. his biggest problem is right at the Periformus muscle on his right side, neck too. me- neck and who knows what else she adjusts....this includes my feet!

Edited May 6, 2015 by cleptogrey

[brandimom]

Been doing holistic care with Chinese herbs, chiro and acu since 2001 when my bridge baby was paralyzed. I truly believe it made a difference in her quality of life.

[MaryJane]

 

Henry's adjustments probably will go well. He's probably experiencing back pain as a result of altered movement from the amputation. Sam actually had back trouble rather than back strain, so adjustments weren't as useful for Sam.

 

 

My Larry (almost 13 1/2) has been getting adjustments for about 2 to 3 years and he is almost always better the next day. The times he wasn't better was when he also got the cold laser treatment, so we stopped doing those. Larry has some back issues but, he also has a bad corn on the front paw and because of that, his gait is off. I would probably say that the adjustments are fixing the tension in the back because of the corn rather than fixing a "back issue" but, really hard to say either way. To make sure the dogs don't get stressed, the chiro makes house calls.

[krissy]

I'm a huge fan of chiropractic since getting Kili. I know a lot of people think it's bogus or not good, or whatever else. But Kili has shown me that some animals really do need it.

 

I think everyone on this forum has seen how much Kili LOVES agility. She thrives. It is beyond obvious that she enjoys it immensely. However, she will suddenly become very off... anywhere from just slower and less enthusiastic, all the way to the extreme one time of refusing all equipment... she wouldn't jump, she refused the tunnel, she bailed off the dog walk.... And it happens anywhere from a month to a few months without an adjustment. If I see an early sign (just a little slow or less enthused) she goes to see her chiro right away, and regardless she goes regularly once a month. Once she has seen her chiro and been adjusted the difference is immediate. She right away returns to full enthusiasm and speed in the ring. She needs those adjustments. She will seem fine in every other aspect of her life (still running around, still playing with toys), but she will not run agility... and that tells me that something tweaks and hurts enough that she doesn't want to play.

 

It is important to find a GOOD chiro that you trust though. We are talking about our dog's backs here. We have loved both chiros that we've had. Kili also sees a rehab tech, and one of the vets I work with has her rehab certification so she sometimes gives Kili adjustments too. Hopefully in the next 5 years I can get my own certification.

[greysmom]

Did your dogs have an obvious sign that an adjustment was necessary? Chiropractic adjustments work on humans so it makes sense to me they would work on a dog. I'm just wondering if an older dog, even without obvious issues, would benefit from treatment. Annie is 7-1/2 and has slowed down a lot.. a lot lot. I've been putting it down to aging. She does have arthritis in her spine and is on Vetprofit for it, but I wonder if there are other issues.

 

You might try accupuncture with Annie. I haven't had an opportunity to try chiropractic on any of mine, but I've been very impressed with how accupuncture has helped Lilly.

[OwnedBySummer]

I'm glad it's working for your boy! Summer fell at a run one day and slid on her back. A couple of weeks later, she started holding up a hind leg when she ran, so she was running on 3. I took her to a recommended chiropractor and she fixed it right up. Now we go for regular "tune ups" and I think it's great. I also went to Summer's chiropractor and was very pleased with her -- I prefer women as I just find them gentler, even when they are performing the same action.

[turbotaina]

When we were battling Turbo's lameness (that turned out to be a tiny but severe corn), he had become very crooked because he was over-compensating with his good leg. There's a lovely chiro here who does home visits and I had her come out and adjust Turbo. It made a HUGE difference! He was still lame (corn), but he walked much straighter and seemed much more comfortable. I recommended the chiro to several friends and they all felt she did a good job on their dogs as well.

[rascalsmom]

Some of you may remember when my Ruby had her accident. We'd moved, and our new house had a patio door. Since we moved in February, the dogs weren't used to the screen door. Well, on a sunny April day, the dogs were outside, and the patio door was open (with screen in place). Ruby decided it must be time for dinner, and proceeded to enter the house THROUGH the screen door, not seeing it. She was not running, just sort of walking fast to the house. She hit the screen with her nose, and down she went. She stopped breathing, and I thought she was dying before my eyes. My daughter did some rescue breathing, we packed Ruby into the car and headed off to the emergency vet. On the way there she seemed to revive, but could not get up. She was at the emergency vet for a couple of days, not able to walk at all or even get up. We brought her home, had to sling-walk her, were doing syringe feeding. A few days later I was at church, and talking to someone about her, saying how we might have to have her PTS. Another woman overheard, and suggested a chiropractor to me. Said this guy really helped her dog. This was a regular chiro, NOT a vet chiro. He just happened to also work on animals, dogs, horses, etc.

 

Well, we took her there, he said her neck was really messed up, and did an adjustment. He said to bring her back the next evening, and by the third treatment he'd be able to tell us if he'd be able to help her. The next day, as we were getting ready to take her in, she STOOD UP AND WALKED about 30 feet! It wasn't pretty, but she was back on her feet! I was completely amazed. I took her back a couple of times a week, then monthly, for awhile. She was never able to really run again--she'd try and her back end would kind of get ahead of her front end---but she was on her feet. It bought us another eight months or so with her, and then we had to have her PTS because she was again having trouble getting around--but this time she was crying out in pain (which she had never done with the original injury).

 

I still have Dr. Dave's card, just in case. He was so compassionate, and he did wonders with Ruby. Odd thing, though--Ruby never barked again after the injury.

[lukasmom]

The animal conmmunicator Latifa told me my new boy Carter had back, neck pain and to see a chiropractor for adjustments. Lucky for me there is a vet office 5 minutes from my house has one and some of my greyhound friends use him and recommend him. I took Carter and he found his back was stiff, his shoulder, neck and jaw needed adjustments. He asked if I ever saw Carter shake, like when he gets up from a nap and thinking about it I hadn't noticed but he was not doing that. He said dogs who don't shake are in pain.

So far Carter has had three appointments and boy can I see the difference. After his last one he was like a wild boy when he got home. He felt that good.

We are going to go every 6 months just to make sure he is still feeling good. I would highly recommend this kind of treatment for your hounds. It does help.

[XTRAWLD]

Ryder goes for maintenance these days, but was regularly seeing one since the age of three. I've recently been taking Kasey to help with his LS. Chiro really is a wonderful wonderful thing.

[lothianjavert]

Sully saw a chiro several times as he got older. It made a big difference. He was always much bouncier afterwards-especially the day after. It was obvious he was feeling better and seemed more comfortable. The chiro that the vet recommended is local and certified for people as well as animals. He comes to her clinic a few times a month. It is not something I would have thought of (always considered chiro hokey) but my vet convinced us to try it and it worked.

[a_daerr]

Henry was running around, barking, and leaping on and off the bed this morning! How crazy is that?

(I erased the back leg of this emoti, so it's more Hen-like, LOL!)