What is Hydrotherapy for Pets?
At Modern Vet we offer hydrotherapy for your pet through using an underwater treadmill. The underwater treadmill consists of a treadmill enclosed in a tank, which gradually fills with water to a suitable height for your pet. The underwater treadmill allows your pet to exercise while taking advantage of the therapeutic and buoyant effects of the water.
Why is the underwater treadmill beneficial?
The underwater treadmill works in several ways, taking advantage of several properties of water.
Buoyancy enables those pets who may be weak or unable to weight-bear due to pain, to exercise in a supported environment. In the underwater treadmill, weight-bearing can be reduced by as much as 80%; a huge benefit if weight-bearing is painful.
Warm water relieves pain, inflammation & improves joint range of movement.
Water resistance helps tone muscles and increases strength. By carefully selecting an appropriate water level, the physiotherapist can target which muscles are most affected by the water’s resistance. Also, working against this resistance can significantly improve cardiovascular fitness; great for sporting or working dogs that need to improve their fitness.
Water also provides sensory input that’s particularly useful for rehabilitating dogs with spinal conditions providing sensory feedback from damaged nerves. The moving Treadmill belt also helps with limb movement/paw placement and re-education of gait.
So which is better, swimming or using the underwater treadmill?
When is it more appropriate to choose the underwater treadmill instead of swimming? Swimming is just as good as walking in water right? This is actually not the case. Although both activities involve the use of water, they differ in how they benefit our patients and the type of patients they treat more effectively. The benefits of using the underwatertreadmill are:
- The physiotherapist is able to control many factors including the depth of the water, the speed and incline of the treadmill, and even which legs your pet uses when exercising. This means the treatment they receive can be tailored to target specific areas.
- Exercising on the underwater treadmill encourages a normal gait pattern, which is often the aim if your pet has been limping or not weight-bearing due to injury, disease or surgery.
- Helps to assist in extending the limb or joint in comparison to swimming, which assists with flexing the joint.
- The underwater treadmill can also make hydrotherapy accessible for those pets who are fearful of water; as they walk into a dry tank and the water fills gently from the bottom, most patients tolerate this exceptionally well as their feet are always firmly on a solid surface!
