Animal Care
How can Osteopathy help my animal
Like people, animals suffer from back, neck, hip and musculoskeletal problems and can benefit from osteopathic treatment.
Osteopathic treatment balances the animal's musculoskeletal system and helps restore and maintain health. Treatment is directed to the whole body, working holistically to find and treat the cause of the symptoms. The techniques are gentle, non-invasive and involve no drugs or anaesthetic.
The case history is taken from the owner of the animal and then the spine, pelvis and any of the relevant joints are analysed for misalignment in the joints or spasm in the associated muscles.
The most common reasons that animals have been referred by veterinary surgeons or brought along by their owners have included:
- lameness as a result of a fall or accident, when alternative causes have been ruled out by your vet
- uncharacteristic changes in performance, behaviour or temperament
- limb dragging or odd irregular action
- absence of any resolution of the problem using conventional methods
- unlevelness, especially in the hindquarters, uneven wear of shoes, sore or cold backs, uneven pressure from saddles, numnahs etc.
- unexplained deterioration in usual performance
- asymmetry such as stiffness in one rein or disunited canter
- unexplained resistance such as napping, rearing, refusing, bucking etc.
- uneven muscle development or atrophy
- injuries associated with falls
Animals more commonly treated by an osteopath include cats, dogs and horses.
We ask that you always consult your veterinary surgeon before seeking osteopathic treatment for your animal.