What Can I Expect From Chiropractic?

How can chiropractic help my animal?

The idea behind chiropractic is to align the nervous system appropriately so that it can function at its fullest. The nervous system controls everything in the body, so chiropractic can be used to address almost anything that isn’t functioning at its best. Previously, chiropractic has been viewed as a solution to back pain, but it is actually not that at all. Is your dog vomiting? An adjustment will ensure the gastric nerves are working correctly, which may allow the vomiting to stop. Has your dog been diagnosed with heart failure or diabetes? Adjustments may allow the body to respond better to the medications allowing for a lower effective dose. The goal of chiropractic is never to FIX the problem, it is to give the body a fighting chance at fixing itself.

A side effect of chiropractic is pain relief.

Yes, you read that correctly, a SIDE EFFECT of chiropractic is pain relief. How amazing is that? So when you come to me asking to fix your animals pain, that is not what I’m going to do. All I do is align the spine and/or extremities and the body does the rest. You have to trust the process.

What can I expect when you come to adjust my animal?

Dogs take me about 3-5 minutes, depending on how they handle it. Horses take 15-20 minutes if all we are doing is an adjustment. Some animals sit perfectly still and allow me to do whatever I need. Some resist or fight it. On the ones that resist, I frequently adjust only what is necessary (atlas and the pelvis) and try again in a weeks time. I do this because the animals often feel a lot better after the adjustment and the next time they see me they realize what I’m doing and will cooperate with me. And yes, it still costs the same even if your animal doesn’t behave.

What do you expect of me as an owner if we agree to try chiropractic?

First and foremost, I expect a positive attitude. The mind has a lot more power than we realize, and going into a treatment with the attitude that it is going to help is key. This attitude is felt by your animal as well. I also want you to understand chiropractic isn’t an instant fix. Sometimes, we see immediate improvement in gate or attitude due to the activation of mechanoreceptors, but that is a short term pain relief. To have long term healing, chiropractic requires time and repeat treatments. Please have an open mind and expect 4-6 treatments at a minimum.

Why do you frequently mix acupuncture and chiropractic?

This question may have a different answer for each animal. Acupuncture is a ancient healing modality all in itself, and while it is completely different from chiropractic, the two work well together.

In horses, I frequently deal with chronic injuries that are either difficult to adjust or wont hold their adjustment. Sometimes, the horse is so painful there they wont allow me to adjust them. In these cases I use acupuncture for a couple reasons.

1. I can needle the troubled area directly, allowing me to address the painful muscle or ligament that wont allow the adjustment to happen. I will use electroacupuncture if the horse tolerates it (most do) and get extreme muscle relaxation, which sometimes allows the horse to even adjust themselves!

2. There are several relaxation points that I can needle allowing the horse to relax its mind and accept the adjustment.

In dogs, I rarely have a hard time getting the adjustment unless they wont sit still. I will use acupuncture in more of the Traditional Chinese Medicine sense to concurrently address our issue from two different methods to hope for faster results.

*Please note, I also do exclusively acupuncture sessions on horses and dogs to address medical issues, but that discussion will be saved for another blog as it is very detailed!

What else does your practice have to offer?

I use a product called the ‘web c2’ that offers PEMF therapy (pulsed electromagnetic frequency) which helps encourage oxygenation of the red blood cells and quicker healing. This modality has been extensively researched as a main stay for osteoarthritis pain.

I also frequently use trigger point massage techniques, stretching, swimming, passive range of motion and other therapies in conjunction with chiropractic care.

If you are wondering to yourself if your horse or dog needs an adjustment, the answer is YES. Give me a call today to get on the schedule!