|
|
|
|
How to Tell If Your Dog’s Spine Is Healthy
The only way that you will truly know if your dog has a subluxation in its spine is to have it examined by an AVCA certified doctor. However, there are a few things that you can do before and after exercise that may give you an indication that your canine companion would benefit from chiropractic care.
Watch your dog as it turns its head to eat a treat held at the shoulder or bite that fly which is buzzing around. There should be no tilt in the head as your dog turns to reach back. Many dogs will back in order to try and get a treat; others will twist their head around and grab the treat with a sideways maneuver. You can check the length of your dog’s back legs. They should be the same length when your dog’s spine is straight and should stay the same length when their head is turned each way. Subluxations in the head, neck or pelvis may cause one leg to be shorter than the other. Look for heat, swelling and tenderness along the spine and around the joints of the rest of the spine.
Your dog may benefit from chiropractic care if he or she exhibits one or more of the following signs:
- Decrease in level of performance, laziness; remember the nervous system supplies the body with energy.
- Loss of wind capacity (rib subluxation will affect the dog’s ability to respire).
- Problems or difficulty executing desired movements (climbing stairs, jumping on the couch, agility obstacles).
- Behavioral changes (starting to snap, refusal to play with family members).
- Problems eating or refusing to play with toys.
- Short striding, uneven strides, nail dragging, stumbling.
- Diagnosed conditions, such as degenerative arthritis.
- Muscle imbalance, spasms or atrophy.
- Abnormal posture when standing, standing with hips uneven, choosing to stand on uneven ground, not squaring up when urinating, holding tail to one side.
- Shaking of the head, constant ear problems, allergies.
- Injuries resulting from falls, training or other activities.
- Stressful situations, such as poor conformation of the dog, various training equipment, performance level and ability of the dog.
- Chronic disease conditions, multiple repetitive infections, weak immune system.
|
|
|
