My friend has the most gorgeous blonde Labrador called Robby (he’s my Lab’s half brother so I might be biased!)

He is such a friendly and happy chap, his tail wags his whole body. Which is why we could tell something was immediately wrong when he came to greet me and his wag wasn’t working properly. He was in obvious discomfort and his usual smile was more of a grimace.

It turns out that he’d been swimming in the river with his family and friends, and his owner, a little boy, had been practising life saving with him. Apparently he had held onto Robby’s tail, while Robby had swum and towed him.

I wouldn’t recommend that you use your dog’s tail to hold on to unless it is an emergency, but hindsight as they say, is a wonderful thing

Anyway, I had a feel of Robby’s muscles and joints. He was obviously in discomfort when I palpated around his pelvis and tail and pretty reluctant to let me adjust it, but I did and there was some improvement.

A couple of days later it was less sore, but he was still not wagging in his usual way. So I re-adjusted his tail and he improved again. The next morning he was back to his full bodied wag – a happy ending to this doggy tail

On the 23rd-26th October 2009, Equinology® are running their "Principles of Saddle Fitting and Shoeing Dynamics" in California.

Dr. Kerry Ridgway, DVM is teaching and he is brilliant. I've taken this course before and got so much out of it. If I were the USA as opposed to Australia I would definitely be signing up to do it again!

It is great for horse owners, practitioners and vets - and now that it is RACE (Registry of Approved Continuing Education) approved it is a fantastic way to get your continuing education/ professional developement hours.

There is more info below or you can go directly to the site to sign up,  just click on the link below.
http://equinology.com/info/course.asp?courseid=15

More info from the Equinology® site:

"If you are an owner, it's time you learned exactly how a saddle should fit instead of listening to marketing gimmicks and misinformation. In the USA this course is now RACE approved. Please see details below.

Our instructor for this course, Dr. Kerry Ridgway, DVM, a household name worldwide, is also certified by the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society. He presents this 4 day clinic with slides, examples of trees, pads, saddles, shoes, wedges, measuring devices, templates, demonstrations, and a variety of horses with saddle fitting and shoeing issues. Saddle fit topics and practicals encompass 85% of the course. The remainder of the course addresses farrier issues. This includes issues we should look for in the foot and how it can also affect saddle fit.  

Because most of us cannot run out and buy a new saddle if it no longer fits, Dr. Ridgway addresses this common problem by offering ideal, existing, and temporary solutions.  

Course Outline (2 Parts):  

Part 1, Saddle Fitting:  

•   Indirect problems caused by poor saddle fit (behavioral, performance, and referred pathology issues)  

•   Direct problems caused by poor saddle fit (trauma to muscles and skin)  

•   Anatomical and physiologic signs of poor saddle fit  

•   Proper placement of saddles  

•   Saddle fit pertaining to the static posture (standing still)  

•   Saddle fit pertaining to the dynamic posture (movement)  

•   Correlation between the static and dynamic fit  

•   Existing and ideal solutions for saddle fit  

•   Actual science of saddle pressure and fit  

•   Evaluating the horse’s back  

•   Proper palpation of the back  

•   Proper reflex tests  

•   Evaluating the saddle off the back then the correlation of it on the back  

•   Evaluating the saddle with the rider up  

•   Fitting and measuring the saddle using the current various methods  

•   Pros and cons of various measuring devices  

•   Instruction on making templates you can use  

•   Saddle pad materials and functions  

Part 2, Farrier Issues:  

•   Anatomy and care of the feet  

•   Normal functions of the foot  

•   Pastern/hoof axis  

•   Balanced shoeing and trimming  

•   Location and causes of lameness  

•   Reading the break over  

•   How shoeing/trimming affects the horses’ performance  

•   The balanced hoof  

In the farrier portion of the course, Dr. Ridgway relates the lower leg conformation and shoeing techniques to how this will affect the work of the equine care provider, equine massage therapist, chiropractor and acupressure/acupuncture therapist as well as the effects on the horse's Myofascial system.  

Prerequisite: Horse handling skills and a thorough understanding of equine safety a must! Knowledge of veterinary vocabulary and anatomy strongly suggested or completion of EQ100, 101, 102 or comparable program.  

EQ700 has been RACE (Registry of Approved Continuing Education) approved: program number: Program Number: 462-5413

Number of Hours of CE for Veterinarians: 29.50 (maximum for one veterinarian: 29.50)

Number of Hours of CE for Veterinary Technicians: 29.50 (maximum for one veterinary technician: 29.50)

This program was reviewed and approved by the AAVSB RACE program.

Fun one for Friday!

This is absolutely brilliant – still giggling!! It must have taken them ages.

Click on the picture for the video – have a top weekend

I'd never heard of animal Radionics for pets, but while I was treating a person he told me about one of his horses. She wasn't and hadn't been 'quite right in herself' for a while. He'd tried the vet but they couldn't find anything specific.

A couple of days later, I went out and had a look at her, but I didn't feel that the root cause was a problem chiropractic or any of the other manual therapies in my personal box of tricks was going to solve.

The owner then started talking about 'the black box'...

Pictures of sifting through plane crash wreckage and finding 'the black box', which held the key to his horse's ailments, initially sprang to my overactive mind. However he explained that 'You send off a sample (usually hair) to the lady with "the black box", she analyses it and tells you what's wrong with your horse'.

Well this certainly sounded different and piqued my interest. So that evening I trawled the internet in an effort to find out more about this therapy, which is actually called Animal Radionics for Pets.

When the owner came back for his next treatment I asked him what the lady with the black box had said. Apparently there was a particular type of grass in a batch of hay they were feeding that was causing the mare's problems. He'd changed the hay and 'hay presto'! A full recovery.

Having spoken to a number of other pet owners since, it seems that they have also had pretty amazing results, with; laminitis, injury identification, nutritional deficiencies and emotional issues to name just a few issues to benefit from Animal Radionics for Pets.

You can find more information about Radionics for animals here and find radionics for pet’s practitioners in the naturallycomplementary.com directory.

A bit of fun for Friday - this is definitely alternative and not something that I would personally want to try!

Did you know that alligators, frogs, chickens and other animals can be hypnotised??

I didn’t believe it either until I watch the video! Have a top weekend

"Wobblers" is one of those diseases where the clue really is in the name, as the syndrome is characterised by an ataxic or "wobbly" gait (usually worse behind).

The wobbliness is caused by spinal cord compression in the neck. The compression can be the result of cervical vertebra (i.e. neck bone) abnormalities or abnormal motion between the bones (or both).

I treated a horse with "wobbler type" symptoms chiropractically. Obviously I called her vet to discuss the case and get his consent before I even went to the yard! The vet confirmed that the neck x-rays showed no instability and he was happy from me to treat her chiropractically.

She was pretty sensitive in the neck and head area, and showed some unsteadiness and gait abnormalities (worse behind). She also had a history of suddenly rearing up for no apparent reason both when ridden and when being lead.

I treated her with chiropractic and soft tissue work. I also worked alongside an excellent Reiki practitioner.

After treatment and a spell in the paddock, she was far less sensitive around the head and neck, her gait had improved and the rearing had stopped. She is now back playing polo and doing very well.

This patient had a very successful outcome from chiropractic and reiki treatment BUT... I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is to get veterinary consent & clearance in all cases, but especially if there is any possibility of Wobblers – you really don't want anyone manipulating your animal's neck if there is the slightest risk of instability.

A bit of fun for Friday - this video of a bear enjoying himself "dancing" really tickled me!

Have a top weekend :-)

I treated a gorgeous little terrier dog with chiropractic. She was an older lady but just loved racing around the garden chasing rabbits – imaginary or otherwise!

Her owner brought her in to see me after she’d shot round the corner of the house chasing a rabbit (real or imagined). Her owner heard a yelp and then the little terrier limped back looking pretty sorry for herself.

A couple of trips to the vet, some pain killers and a few weeks later she had improved, but her gait was still off and she refused to jump up on the sofa, her favourite spot, which was most unusual for her.

Her vet was very happy for her to come and see me for some chiropractic treatment. She improved after the first treatment, but was still not 100%. During the 2^nd treatment I was working around her sacrum (the triangular shaped bone at the base of the spine) and felt a definite movement as I adjusted her. Following treatment her owner reported that she was soon back to her old self and jumping back up on her favourite spot on the sofa!

I continued to see her every few months for maintenance/wellness car. Then one day, very unusually, she and her owner didn’t arrive for their appointment. (I remember suddenly getting a really sharp pain in my head just before they were due, which is unusual for me, I never get headaches...other than the occasional, self inflicted, morning after the night before type :-)

A couple of days later I got a lovely card from her owner saying how much Gussy had enjoyed her visits for chiropractic treatment and how much she had benefited from treatment. She explained that sadly my little four legged patient and friend had passed away, she had a brain tumour.

It is always really sad to lose a patient and friend, but I’m sure that wherever she is now, she’ll be chasing rabbits to her heart’s content and it is good to know that chiropractic helped improve her quality of life in her twilight years.

"Natural remedies for hoof cracks:

HOMEOPATHY:

• Graphites - generally horse appears heavy and skin has poor healing ability
• Thuja - the horse is averse to cold weather and has a tendency to warts

HERBS:

• Burdock, Chickweed, Comfrey and Nettles"

This top tip was from the Natural Remedies (Threshold Picture Guides) book by Christopher Day MA, VetMB, MRCVA, VetFFHom

Natural Remedies (Threshold Picture Guides)

We need more animal (Cat, Dog, Horse Rabbit and other pets) Complementary Alternative Medicines (CAMs) and Evidence Based Research.

Although practitioners see daily the difference they make to patients and there is an abundance of anecdotal evidence, one of the main issues that conventional medicine has had in the past with complementary alternative medicines (CAMs) for animals and people is the lack of evidence based research to support its claims.

Unlike large drug companies with billions of dollars at their disposal for research and development, advertising and marketing, sole complementary alternative medicine (CAM) practitioners for pets usually do not have the resources (time or financial) to "prove" that treatments work.

However thanks to universities, schools and some wonderful individuals, more and more research into complementary alternative medicines (CAMS) for cats, dogs, horses and other animals is being done nowadays.

I was really excited to see a couple of recent studies done on chiropractic and massage treatments on horses.

The first study looked at the changes in spinal "mechanical nociceptive thresholds" (MNTs). This sounds complicated but basically the study measured the pain threshold levels in horses.

This is usually done using computer equipment that gradually increases the mechanical stimulus i.e. pressure. Scientists & researchers like using MNT's as measurements, as they are considered to be a fair and effective tool for evaluation.

They are often used to test the effectiveness of analgesic drugs (the analgesic drug raises the threshold so you aren't as sensitive to pain, so the higher the MNT the more effective the drug treatment).

The study compared Bute (a commonly prescribed drug), massage and chiropractic.

The results showed that the control groups had less than 1% change, that Bute raised the average MNT by 8%, but Chiropractic and Massage raised them by 27% and 12% respectively– Way to go Massage and Chiropractic, 50% more and nearly 3 ½ times as effective than the most commonly prescribed drug!!

The second study looked at the effect chiropractic treatment had on horses that had been clinically diagnosed with back problems. This time the evaluation measurement was range of motion and symmetry of the bones in the back and pelvis, both of which showed significant changes after treatment.

If you want to read more studies, why not check out the "downloads" section of the naturallycomplementary.com community for a wealth of information including the latest research, articles and stories on animal complementary alternative medicines (CAMs).

On the left hand side of the page you can browse the different folder categories. Once you have selected a folder you can narrow your searches down by choosing from the various different tags on the right side of the page – acupuncture, chiropractic homeopathy– whatever takes your fancy!

Tag

Complementary Alternative Medicines (CAMs); Chiropractic; Massage; Research

What’s in a name?

Are you confused?

What's the difference between; alternative medicine, complementary medicine and integrative medicine? And does it really matter?

If you look on the Internet, they seem to be defined in terms of conventional western medicine:

• Alternative medicine is used instead of it
• Complementary medicine is used in conjunction with it
• Integrative medicine is also used in conjunction with it, but needs to be a bit more mainstream than a complementary medicine to qualify.

So far so good.

Now let's assume you don't know much about non-conventional medicines. However, you'd like to try one for your cat, dog, horse or another type of pet / animal. Where do you start?

You could begin by searching for a list of integrative medicines as they seem to be the most accepted by the medical profession. Then you might try looking for the various different types of alternative medicines and complementary medicines to give yourself a few more options.

As you read and compare the lists, confusion sets in. Chiropractic seems to be classified as an alternative medicine, a complementary medicine and an integrative medicine. So are acupuncture and osteopathy and the list goes on and your confusion grows.

For many people this won't matter. I know from my own experience that chiropractic, massage, reiki and a whole host of other non-conventional medicines can be incredibly beneficial for cats, dogs, horses and other pets. The results speak for themselves.

But if the professions can't decide how to define themselves, what chance does the public have of easily finding someone to help their pet? At the very least, it must be a confusing & frustrating experience. At worst, it could damage perception of the professions putting owners off trying these effective forms of treatment.

With the above in mind the naturallycomplementary.com website was created. It explains the various different types of animal alternative medicines and animal complementary medicines available for cats, dogs, horses and other pets and is designed to make the process of finding a practitioner for your pet a whole lot easier.

So anyway, is terminology like size i.e. does it matter?

At the risk of sounding cliched, I agree with Shakespeare.

'That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet.'

At the end of the day as long as it works for your pet, it doesn't really matter what you call it!

I'd thoroughly recommend using Reiki in conjunction with Chiropractic to treat cats, dogs, horses and other animals and pets.

As a chiropractor for animals I've found the combination gives excellent results, pets seem to relax more and adjustments tend to hold a bit longer.

I was very lucky to work with an extremely gifted Animal Reiki therapist in the UK. We'd usually have very similar muscular skeletal findings when we compared notes at the end of a treatment, but because Animal Reiki works on an energetic level, she was also able to pick up other very interesting findings and illicit different reactions in the animals.

Once we were both treating a horse. She directed the Reiki at the left hind leg and the horse stamped that leg. The horse stopped stamping when the Reiki stopped. I was fascinated by this and urged her to see if the response was reproducible. It was (same response, another 3 times, over a 5 minute period).

I've also seen her give Reiki to a dog who was sensitive around his head and ear and his ear started to drain pus. Plus I saw her identify that a horse had had mild colic 48 hours earlier (confirmed by the owner) when there was no discomfort or visible signs or symptoms.

Unlike chiropractic for animals, Reiki for cats; dogs; horses and other pets and animals can be given over a great distance. This was lucky for me, as my horse Tara doesn't load or travel very well, which is not ideal when you decide to relocate from the UK to Australia!

With a 3 hour road trip to UK quarantine, then a 40 hour journey on lorry and plane ahead of her, I asked my Animal Reiki guru to give Tara Reiki throughout her journey and quarantine stays.

Tara has NEVER loaded as well or travelled as quietly as she did to quarantine. And the regular reports from the travel company confirmed she was quiet and relaxed on board the plane/lorries and in quarantine. I'm convinced that it was due to the Animal Reiki and the Rescue Remedy I gave her, as she's certainly back to her previous form now!

Travel for animals, especially long distance trips can be stressful. A friend recently bought a horse from New South Wales (NSW), by the time he arrived in Adelaide, South Australia (SA), he was diagnosed with travel sickness/colitis and had to be put on a drip immediately.

So are there any complementary alternative medicines (CAMS), therapies or remedies you can use to help your animals if they have to make a long journey?

Well when we relocated from the UK to Australia all members of the family - 2 and 4 legged – made the move. I treated all the animals with chiropractic and massage before and after the journey and had Bach flower essences and Reiki given before and during the trip to help calm them.

A friend who also shipped her horse to Australia the year before actually had a wonderful massage and Cranial Sacral Therapy (CST) practitioner go out to Heathrow to give her horse a treatment before boarding to ensure he was fully relaxed– truly upper/first class service!

We also used great pet transport companies, which in my opinion is a must. International Racehorse Transport (IRT) & JG Goldner looked after our horse Tara and Airpets took care of Henry our cat and Monty our dog, both companies I'd highly recommend.

Tara, my horse, travelled from her UK yard to UK quarantine really well. I'd never know her to, load, travel and arrive somewhere new so quietly! According to the lovely people at IRT (who gave me regular updates) she was the same on the flight, at Sydney quarantine and on her trip from NSW to SA. I'm sure this was due to the chiropractic, massage, reiki, rescue remedy and excellent care she received .

Henry the cat and Monty the dog also travelled well. Henry was apparently a bit depressed in quarantine initially, but he'd never been in a cattery before and some distance Reiki perked him up. Monty took everything in his stride, travelling well, endearing himself to all the quarantine staff and arrived at his new home full of beans.

Once out of quarantine and settled at our new place, I massaged and adjusted everyone again - to be honest I think the animals arrived in much better shape than us humans

Find out more about animal; Chiropractic, Reiki, Massage, Cranial Sacral Therapy (CST) and other CAMs, therapies & remedies for pets.

A colleague and very good friend from America emailed me recently. She was on her way to a barn to treat some horses chiropractically, when she noticed a horse in a field on its own looking pretty uncomfortable (pictured below).

She went to investigate further and saw this.

I had to look twice at the picture; I’d never seen anything like it.

Apparently the owner had had the mare (unnamed) since she was 6 months old (pictured here at 7 years old) and she was born with normal limbs.

After she foundered her owner had stopped getting her feet trimmed. Why I don’t know, as foundered horses need a good farrier more than most in my opinion but anyway...subsequently, as you can see from the photo, her left/near fore had rotated 180 degrees, (so her toe was actually facing her tail).

One can only imagine how painful this had been for her.

Although unhopeful given the severity of the deformity, my friend arranged for the local vet to come out to see whether anything could be done.

Prior to the vet’s visit, I contacted two excellent practitioners I’d worked with in the UK and asked them to send distance Reiki and energy healing, which they very kindly did. Both said they felt the mare’s discomfort and that she had shut down a lot of normal responses to survive her situation. On the positive side it was sensed that the mare was picking up on everyone's intent and feelings of good-will towards her, but that “she had she had absolutely no desire to carry on compromising”.

On her next visit, the animal chiropractor said the little mare seemed much quieter, calmer, relaxed and happier than she had been previously. However sadly, but not unsurprisingly, after consulting with the vet, it was decided that the kindest thing would be to have the mare put to sleep.

This poor little mare really does show how important it is to care for animals properly and get the information and advice of professionals who can help before things deteriorate to such a bad state that the point of no return is past.

Sometimes it is too late for conventional, complementary, alternative, holistic or natural medicine.

Prevention is most definitely better than cure.

At least the Reiki and energy healing helped her towards the end. I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone who tried to help her.

Hopefully she’s pain free now and in a better place.