Learn & Go With Dr. Laurie
Identifying canine weakness and a great exercise to combat it
Do you know the most important signs to clue you in to muscle weakness in a dog when you are asking them to perform an exercise? Do you know what to look for in a dog’s face to spot fatigue?
Do you want details on an exercise that can strengthen your pets or patients, puppy, adult, and geriatric alike?
In this quick video, Dr. Laurie reviews pictures and videos to show you how to spot when a dog has some weakness and then teaches you an exercise you can immediately implement into your practice or use with your pet.
Watch the video to meet Ollie and see how his expressive face changes when pushed to rapid fatigue and learn a great strengthening exercise.
How to spot weakness in a dog
When you ask a dog to do an exercise, the body position they take can give you a good idea of where they are weak.
If their posture changes to an abnormal position, it can mean they have pain, a lack of ability to get into that position, or muscle weakness that is not allowing them to hold the biomechanically correct position.
A dog’s inability to hold a position – think of wobbling during a “sit up” or “beg,” is indicator of trunk or core weakness.
And their facial expressions can give you an idea of their level of fatigue. Looking at the eyes, ears and mouth position help you read where the dog is at mentally.
Dogs need a fitness routine
An important goal of creating an exercise program for a dog is finding an exercise that the dog struggles with. This is our area of opportunity to build strength.
An exercise like a Three-legged Stand keeps the dog in a biomechanically correct posture but challenges their balance and core muscles. This is a great exercise that can be used for dogs of any age. The trick is to do them so that the dog has to do as much of the work as possible for them.
When practicing the Three-legged Stand:
Make sure the dog is standing square so they are in a biomechanically correct posture.
Lift a limb with just one finger, don’t grab the limb, or you are doing most of the work.
Hold the position until the dog starts to wobble, counting seconds, then hold it a little longer as this is when they are gaining strength.
If one position is significantly weaker, start and end with this position (one more repetition than the other three) and continue until all positions have the same strength.
When performing this exercise on a flat surface is easy, the next challenge would be to perform it on an unstable surface, like a couch cushion or bed.
When this exercise is easy, progress to Snoopy Exercises/ Diagonal Leg Lifts.
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Conducting a gait analysis on patient with multiple lame legs
Have you seen patients come in with more than one lame leg?
Have you seen lameness patterns change depending on where the dog is walking?
In this Learn & Go with Dr. Laurie we meet Tilly, look at cool radiographs on a little known patella luxation surgery technique done by Dr. John Dee himself, that makes it look like part of the tibial crest is gone. We identify a radiographic change commonly seen with stifle stress that you may not be used to looking at. And then we analyze Tilly's gait from multiple angles and on different angled surfaces, visualizing her multiple lamenesses.
Watch the video below to meet Tilly, see the x-rays, and look the multiple gaits that tell us her story.
Tilly has had a partial cut to her tibial crest with a pin creating the perfect wedge to help alleviate her patella luxation.
DOGS CAN HAVE PAIN AND LAMENESS IN MORE THAN ONE LIMB. SOMETIMES ONE LAMENESS HIDES ANOTHER.
Sometimes they injure a second limb trying to shift weight off of a limb that was previously injured, injure it in a separate incident, or be painful from a chronic disease like arthritis.
WHEN A DOG IS SIGNIFICANTLY LAME, THEY WILL USE THEIR HEAD, TO AID IN WEIGHT SHIFTING, TO DECREASE WEIGHT ON THE MOST AFFECTED LIMB.
In the case of a front leg lameness the dog will lift their head, shifting their weight back, when the sore limb starts to bear weight. This is a “Head Bob Up.”
In the case of a rear limb lameness the dog will drop their head down, shifting weight off of a rear limb as it starts to bear weight. This is a “Head Bob Down.”
IF YOU CAN SEE THERE IS A HEAD BOB BUT CAN NOT TELL IF THE DIRECTION IS UP OR DOWN, YOU CAN HAVE THE DOG WALK ON AN INCLINE AND DECLINE SURFACE TO DIFFERENTIATE IT.
When the dog walks uphill, their weight is shifted back to the rear limbs. If the lameness is reduced, it indicates a front leg lameness. If the lameness is exacerbated, it indicates a rear limb lameness.
When the dog walks downhill, their weight is shifted forward to the front limbs. If the lameness is reduced, it indicates a rear limb lameness. If the lameness is exacerbated, it indicates a front limb lameness.
Note that if there are multiple limbs affected, you may see multiple lamenesses. In the Case of Tilly, because her diagonal limbs were both significantly affected, she went back and forth between two significant lameness patterns trying to find a comfortable way to walk and having to alternate lameness patterns because each time she chose one pattern it made the diagonal limb more uncomfortable.
The best exercise for dogs with hip issues
Today, we're learning a great exercise to strengthen hip muscles and help with laxity, inflammation, and pain.
Do you know dogs that have hip dysplasia, laxity, or other hip issues? These issues are more common in larger dogs, like German Shepherds, Labrador Retrievers, Rottweilers, Great Danes, or Saint Bernards, but can show up in other dogs too.
The exercise I’m showing you today will strengthen the muscles that hold the hip joint together to prevent laxity, inflammation, and pain. It can be used to help alleviate pain once laxity and inflammation have started, and it helps strengthen muscles in the front limbs and trunk.
Watch the video below to see the exercise and several ways to perform it correctly with your dog.
Sideways walking
Walking sideways has a number of benefits for dogs. To start, it strengthens the muscles on the inside and outside of the hip on the rear limbs.
Why it’s important to strengthen a dog’s hip muscles
Strengthening these muscles:
helps stabilize the hip (gluteal, biceps femoris, and pectineus muscles).
helps prevent a “splay” injury or fall in the rear limbs (pectineus, gracilis, and adductor muscles).
helps dogs stay standing - older dogs or dogs that are weak in these muscles, may sink in the rear when they stop walking, (biceps femoris, gluteal, gracilis, adductor, semimembranosus muscles).
propels the dog forward, which aids in running speed and jumping ability (biceps femoris, gluteal, and semimembranosus muscles).
helps stabilize the knee, support the medial and lateral collateral ligaments.
Walking sideways also helps strengthen the muscles on the inside and outside of the front limbs, the muscles that attach the forelimb to the body.
Why it’s important to strengthen the muscles on the inside and outside of a dog’s front limbs
Strengthening these muscles:
helps prevent a “splay” injury or fall in the forelimbs (superficial and deep pectoral muscles)
supports the shoulder joints (superficial and deep pectoral muscles)
OTHER BENEFITS OF WALKING SIDEWAYS
Walking sideways strengthens the tendons and ligaments that support side-to-side stability of the limb joints (carpal, tarsal, stifle, elbow, and digital medial and lateral collateral ligaments)
Walking sideways enhances proprioception (i.e., knowing where the body is in space) and balance, which keeps the body upright. This makes our pets less likely to mis-step or mis-jump and injure themselves.
It also strengthens the trunk or core muscles, which are key to overall stability.
TIPS FROM THE VIDEO
If you haven’t already, be sure to watch the video, as I discuss the different techniques for working with a small dog vs a large dog.
Hand position is extremely important, as pulling up on the dog or placing the rear hand on the dog can create miscommunication of what we are asking the dog to do.
Your body positioning is also important. Leaning forward at the waist or leading with only one foot, can increase the chance of discomfort or injury to the person leading the exercise.
Each dog is different, and we want to give you options on how to best perform Sideways Walking to allow you to use this as a foundation exercise for many more challenges.
Sideways walking is an amazing exercise with challenge levels for dogs that can barely walk to dogs that can walk sideways on a ball unassisted.
The best exercise for your dog
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Do you know the best exercise you can learn and teach to your canine patients? One that can be extremely beneficial for adolescents, adults, athletes, and geriatric dogs? This exercise can help dogs with hip issues, it will strengthen the muscles of acceleration for speed and jumping ability, and so much more.
Watch the video below to see the exercise and several ways to perform it correctly with your dog.
The Benefits of Backwards Walking
Walking backwards has a number of benefits for dogs.
It strengthens the muscles on the back of the rear limbs.
The muscles in the rear limbs:
help dogs rise from a sit or down position
help dogs stay standing - older dogs or dogs that are weak in these muscles, may sink in the rear when they stop walking, backwards walking helps prevent this
propel the dog forward, which aids in running speed and jumping ability
help stabilize the knee, support for the cruciate ligaments (gastrocnemius muscle)
help stabilize the hip (gluteal and biceps femoris muscles)
Walking Backwards strengthens the muscles on the back of the front limbs.
The front limb muscles:
support the wrists or carpal joints.
Older dogs or dogs that have chronic repetitive carpal/wrist joint injuries are weak in these muscles (forelimb flexor muscles)
Dogs that look like they are “down in the pastern” or hyperextend at the carpal joint can benefit from walking backwards.
are the major standing apparatus of the front limbs (triceps muscles)
control deceleration allowing for more controlled movements, faster stops, sharper turns (forelimb flexor and triceps muscles)
allow for better cushioning of the spine when the dog lands from a jump
Other benefits of walking backwards
Walking backwards helps enhance a dog’s balance and proprioception, meaning that a dog knows where their body is in space better, which makes them less likely to mis-step or mis-jump and injure themself.
It also strengthens the trunk muscles, which are key to overall stability.
Tips from the Video
If you haven’t already, be sure to watch the video, as we discuss the importance of head position in creating longer, more productive movements for quicker strengthening.
We also discuss how to help a dog that is weak in the rear and wanting to sit down or the dog who is stubborn and tries to sit down or spin out to the side to avoid performing the exercise.
Each dog is different and we want to give you options on how to perform Backwards Walking to allow you to use this as a foundation exercise for many more challenges.
Backwards walking is truly one of the most versatile exercises with challenge levels for dogs that can barely walk forward to dogs that can walk backwards on a ball unassisted on a hill.
How does Cooling Tissue before laser impact penetration?
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Do you ever wonder if your laser energy is getting deep enough into the tissue? Maybe you wish you could get better penetration into the tissue, or perhaps you just want to use less energy and still get maximum penetration. Today we’re talking about cooling tissue before lasering and how that affects the depth of penetration.
Common areas we want deep penetration include hip joints, the abdominal organs, the chest cavity to treat the heart or lungs, and dense connective tissue e.g. the calcaneal tendon.
So how can we get lasers to go deeper?
Watch the video below to learn about research that’s been done on cooling tissue before using different types of lasers.
*Please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals.
A 2017 study looked at how well lasers penetrated humans’ achilles tendons after 20 minutes of cryotherapy (ice). They compared how much energy passed through the tendons using an 810 nm 200 mW laser on continuous mode and a 904 nm 60 mW laser on superpulsed mode (superpulsed lasers produce high power impulses for brief durations that go deeper into tissue without creating heat).
There were differences in the original penetration as we well as penetration after the cryotherapy.
The 904 nm laser penetrated tissue better overall even though the average power was only 60 mW compared to the 810 nm that had 200 mW continuous power. Wavelengths play a big part of penetration and effect.
The 904 nm wavelength had an approximately 33% increase in penetration after icing compared to the 810 nm laser that had an approximately 25% increase in penetration after icing.
What’s causing the difference in penetration? It may be that since there is less blood in the tissue due to vasoconstriction and therefore less heme from the red blood cells, there is less absorption of the photons and so more penetration. It may also be that there is less tissue. In the study, they measured the width of the tendon, and the tendons were thinner after the cryotherapy. My guess is it is a combination of both and potentially other factors that we are not aware of at this time.
If you’re a member of our Optimum Laser Therapy Course, definitely check out Module 36: Pneumonia to learn about treating the lungs.
If you would like to learn more about USING lasers to treat pets, join us at Optimum Laser Therapy to earn 19 hours of RACE approved continuing education and join a community of like minded vets obtaining Optimum Laser Results.
Lordosis – the cause, effects, and Treatments
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Lordosis, or swayback, is an inward curve or hyperextension of the spine, which leads to back pain, gait changes, potentially shoulder pain, and other issues that compromise animals’ quality of life. There are several known causes of lordosis, some that are treatable with an easy fix, some that are moderately difficult to treat, and some that we can slow the progression of.
Lordosis can be caused by a number of things – weak abdominal muscle, weakness of the shoulder girdle muscles, postural changes that can be related to the front or rear limbs, and even nail care.
Lordosis can lead to back pain, shoulder pain, gait changes, and inflammation, which can be treated symptomatically, but if we can treat the root cause we can relieve these issues without medications. Sometimes all it takes is a nail trim. Really!
Let’s get into our video…
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
Looking at pictures of Queenie – a 16-year-old (give or take a year) lab with severe progressive lordosis – we can see her progression over the years from simple abdominal muscle weakness to abdominal muscle and shoulder girdle muscle weakness.
Treating LORDOSIS
The Assisi Loop is a safe and easy way to help with pain and inflammation and can be used several times a day by a pet parent.
Chiropractic or manual therapy can be beneficial to relieve pain and allow the spine to move better.
Laser therapy can reduce pain and inflammation and can (and in my opinion should) be used concurrently with the Assisi Loop.
Nail trims can make dramatic changes in thoracolumbar posture immediately, if the nails are long and at least partially the cause for the lordosis. When a dog’s nails hit the ground it tells their nervous system that they are walking uphill and must change their posture to accommodate.
Cat Stretches can immediately relieve discomfort and increase spinal motion to help strengthen the abdominal muscles.
Exercises that target the abdominal and shoulder-girdle muscles include goosing at the chest, flank, and or abdomen, and with patients like Queenie, flexion cookie stretches in a lateral position.
Be sure to watch the video for examples of these exercise.
She may not have normal posture, but we have greatly improved Queenie’s quality of life, taken away the pain to make her happy. Her mom is continuing to see signs of improvement!
If you would like to learn more about how to treat the thoracolumbar spine and more than 25 other body conditions or areas join us at Optimum Laser Therapy to earn 19 hours of RACE approved continuing education and join a community of like minded vets obtaining Optimum Laser Results.
Helping Zoey, the hunchback
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Tell Us What You Think!
Today, we're continuing with our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets & patients.
Many dogs have posture issues that you many not even notice, yet it can be there because of pain and may in itself cause pain.
We look at Zoey as an example to see what to look for, what is causing the problem, and discuss a simple way to decrease her back pain as we treat her primary issues.
Ready to get optimum, life-changing results with your laser? join mY Optimum Laser Therapy online course + community.
JOIN OUR ONLINE COURSE + COMMUNITY!
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
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Exercises to strengthen your dog’s wrists
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Tell Us What You Think!
Today, we're continuing with our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets & patients.
Does your dog have weakness or pain in their wrists? Do you want to know how to make them feel better and get stronger?
Digging is a great exercise to help strengthen the wrists. Watch how I teach Syd to dig. If you work with dogs you can teach your patients how to get stronger and feel better with this simple exercise.
Ready to get optimum, life-changing results with your laser? join mY Optimum Laser Therapy online course + community.
JOIN OUR ONLINE COURSE + COMMUNITY!
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
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For More Videos from Dr. Laurie, SUBSCRIBE TO THE OPV Newsletter
*We respect your privacy and won’t sell or share your information. By subscribing, you’re agreeing to our Privacy Policy.
Helping stretch, the dog that couldn’t stretch
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Tell Us What You Think!
Today, we're continuing with our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets & patients.
Meet Stretch, a six-year-old Sheltie that had pain at his hips when he tried to extend them. Stretch couldn’t jump up and place his front feet on the couch or bed because it was too painful.
In this video we discuss how to do a joint mobilization called a “Spin” that can reduce or eliminate pain and significantly improve joint range of motion.
Ready to get optimum, life-changing results with your laser? join mY Optimum Laser Therapy online course + community.
JOIN OUR ONLINE COURSE + COMMUNITY!
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
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For More Videos from Dr. Laurie, SUBSCRIBE TO THE OPV Newsletter
*We respect your privacy and won’t sell or share your information. By subscribing, you’re agreeing to our Privacy Policy.
Bromley – Exercises for a Frenchie with knee issues
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Tell Us What You Think!
Today, we're continuing with our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets & patients.
Meet Bromley, an adorable Frenchie with knee and back issues.
In this video we look at his posture and discuss exercises to help him live a pain-free life. We can see his progress; we even get him to wag his tail!
Ready to get optimum, life-changing results with your laser? join mY Optimum Laser Therapy online course + community.
JOIN OUR ONLINE COURSE + COMMUNITY!
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
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For More Videos from Dr. Laurie, SUBSCRIBE TO THE OPV Newsletter
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GaIt and Exercise with a Distant Pug
Today, we're continuing our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets and patients.
Tell Us What You Think!
Today, we're continuing with our series on how to get Optimum Exercise Outcomes with your canine pets & patients.
Meet Chloe, she is a 17 yr old Pug in California I was asked to consult on.
We first look at her Posture and Gait.
Slow motion video gives you time to See what I See.
We cover some Helpful Solutions, what would Laurie Do.
Lastly, we highlight an Exercise - Both “How to Do It Right” and “How It Can Be Done Wrong”.
We are Always looking for "Optimum Results”
Ready to get optimum, life-changing results with your laser? join mY Optimum Laser Therapy online course + community.
JOIN OUR ONLINE COURSE + COMMUNITY!
*Pet parents, please note that this video was created for veterinary professionals. Your pet should always be examined, diagnosed, and treated by a licensed veterinary professional.
Connect with Us & Share this video
For More Videos from Dr. Laurie, SUBSCRIBE TO THE OPV Newsletter
*We respect your privacy and won’t sell or share your information. By subscribing, you’re agreeing to our Privacy Policy.