Canine Chiropractic Care

Canine chiropractic care can help virtually every athlete, and every couch potato, who will have areas in their spine where adjacent vertebrae (bones that make up the spine) are not moving with a full, normal range of motion. A lack of normal joint motion (in the spine or pelvis) is called, in chiropractic terms, a subluxation. As a dog engages in activities that place demands on its bones, muscles and ligaments subluxations may become worse. Subluxations may interfere with their ability to perform certain functions, or create pain when they try to do the exercise.

Subluxations can range from very subtle ones that only a chiropractor may appreciate, to quite obvious.

Subluxations may be associated with areas of the spine or pelvis that:

• arch upward or dip downwards
• feel asymmetrical or uneven
• show unusual stiffness or increased motion
• have a different temperature (hot or cold)
• have muscle spasm present

Animals with subluxations may do things such as:

• fail to sit square, show an altered gait, stand with weight shifted to one side
• be unable to jump on things that never previously posed a problem
• give poor performance, stop before finishing an event, trip, lack power in their hindquarters
• show fatigue, stiffness or lameness after exercise
• lose interest in performing tasks they used to enjoy
• sleep poorly, circle a lot before lying down
• hesitate before going up or down stairs

An animal chiropractor finds these subluxations and ‘adjusts’ the area. An adjustment is a physical manipulation that restores normal joint motion to the area.

Keeping your pet’s spine ‘well adjusted’ will help achieve maximal comfort and performance. It will help to avoid injury and to recover more rapidly from injury.

Your Veterinary Chiropractor should be certified by the American Veterinary Chiropractic Association - see the AVCA website at www.animalchiropractic.org

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