Myth #4: My animal isnʼt working hard right now, so thereʼs no point in a massage.

Myth #4: My animal isnʼt working hard right now, so thereʼs no point in a massage.

While it's true that hard work and athletic activity is a great reason to offer your pet or horse a massage, there are also many benefits for less active animals. In fact, in some cases it may be especially useful during these times. Regular and vigorous exercise offers all of us many important health benefits, but sometimes it doesn't seem to happen for stretches of time, for whatever reason. (I know I've been feeling the consequences of this lately, and my body is definitely feeling the difference!) These exercise benefits help not only our muscles and joints, but also our organs and immune system, not to mention our mental and emotional well-being.

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Copyright © 2010 All About Animal MassageReasons for lack of activity might be due to:

• an injury, illness or surgery • advanced age • the weather or season • or the busy schedule of the

owner or trainer

Massage is one way to offer your animal some of the same health benefits during times that exercise is limited. If your animal is healthy and simply inactive, the massage may be quite similar to their usual massage. During times of recovery from injuries and illnesses, or for older animals, special techniques and modalities may be used instead of or in addition to more standard massage. For example, your massage therapist may have special training to work with scar tissue or areas of swelling. He or she may also be able to offer techniques such as acupressure or Reiki during times that regular massage may be contraindicated (not appropriate).

Whether you'd like to offer therapeutic touch for your animal, or enlist the support of a professional, or both, remember that some form of touch is almost always beneficial. The question is which techniques are going to be most helpful (and not cause harm) for your animal's unique needs. I encourage you to explore the answer to this question throughout your animal's life, whatever their level of activity. I'm sure you'll find it a rewarding and educational adventure!

Blood testing is important to identify Cushings disease

In a continuation about Cushings disease; Dr. Becker explains the importance of blood testing to determine what is going on in your dog.  It is a difficult disease to identify.  

The Importance of Blood Testing

I think it’s important for you to ask for a copy when you have annual blood work done on your dog. I would show the blood work to the pet owners and say, “Look, your dog has had ALP elevation for two or three years,” and their answer would be, “Why didn’t my veterinarian tell me?”

Unfortunately, many reactive veterinarians simply won’t address Cushing’s disease until all of the symptoms are there, or until you begin telling him or her about the symptoms: “My dog’s peeing in the house,” “My dog’s hair is falling out,” or “My dog’s incontinent at night in bed.”

Oftentimes once you start complaining, your veterinarian starts digging. But if you want to be proactive in preventing this disease from occurring, you need to be asking for copies of blood work and why every single blood work value is not balanced or correct.

Your veterinarian needs to partner with you to be able to identify if your dog is at risk of having pre-Cushing’s symptoms, or indeed already cushingoid. So if the ALP value is already elevated in your dog’s blood work, you need to ask your veterinarian if this could be the start of Cushing’s disease.

The diagnosis of Cushing’s disease is difficult. Typically it’s with the blood test. There are two blood tests that many veterinarians will do.

An ACTH stem test is a two-part blood draw that veterinarians will do to diagnose Cushing’s disease, along with a low-dose dexamethasone suppression test. Both of those are two-part – sometimes three-part – blood draws that compare the cortisol levels in your pets’ bodies to be able to make a consistent diagnosis of Cushing’s disease.

After Cushing’s disease has been diagnosed, your veterinarian will want to determine if it’s indeed adrenal or pituitary dependent. In my opinion, the best way to rule out an adrenal tumor is non-invasive ultrasound. Some veterinarians prefer to do a secondary blood test called a high-dose dexamethasone suppression test.

It is important to have a definitive diagnosis of Cushing’s and what type, either adrenal or pituitary dependent. This way, your vet will be able to offer you treatment options to the best of his or her ability.

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