About the Therapy?
​At Out of Step Canine, gentle non-invasive soft tissue techniques are used to assess, treat and manage injury, pain and dysfunction primarily of the neuro-musculoskeletal system.  The techniques used help to restore balance, improve natural movement and influence the body’s own ability to repair. The body is a biotensegress system and moves as one unit.  Strain or injury of any one part of your dog’s body can compromise the whole body and all systems, and over time, have a detrimental effect on mobility, mood, overall health and quality of life.  By treating the body holistically the aim is to address the compensation patterns as well as the initial cause, restoring and maintaining structural alignment and well-being. 
Soft tissue includes muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia and even nerves.  Soft tissue commands the movement and structure of the body including the bones (skeleton), therefore soft tissue therapy should be the first port of call for any muscular/skeletal dysfunction or imbalance.  
Imbalance can be caused  by trauma, surgery, sprains and strains, over exercise, excessive play, slips or trips, genetic or orthopeadic conditions, visceral conditions or due to compensation issues brought about by activities of daily living (often mistaken for general aging).
Using various techniques including myofascial release to affect the whole musculoskeletal system and aid the body's recovery rather than focusing on the symptomatic lameness or injury, the sessions take a holistic approach in order to improve the overall balance of the body. 
The therapy can provide a very effective natural form of pain management for orthopaedic conditions such as Arthritis and can improve quality of life for these dogs and those with neurological and spinal conditions such as CDRM (Chronic Degenerative Radiculo Myelopathy) and IVDD (Intervertebral Disc Disease).
Proactively, it is an effective way of improving and maintaining performance of working dogs whether in the show ring or out in the field, a  little like maintenance for your car, to keep it running and performing well.
Each dog is treat as an individual working within their own comfort zone mentally and physically to ensure they have a pleasant experience which in turn optimises the healing process.

Could my dog benefit?
Nearly every dog can benefit, no matter the age, breed or size.  If your dog is very active or competes or has been diagnosed with a condition that affects their mobility or is showing any of the below signs or symptoms then your dog could benefit from the treatment:

• Lame or limping
• Changes in gait (how your dog moves)
• Slowing down on walks
• Slow or stiff on rising 
• Old before their time
• Uneven nail wear 
• Postural changes
• Twitching of skin when stroked or brushed
• Changing in coat direction or texture
• Unable to do activities they used to do such as climbing the stairs, jumping into the car or onto the sofa 
• Changes in performance of working dogs e.g. agility dogs – missing weave entries, measuring, knocking poles or missing contacts
• Not responding to long-term medication or other forms of bodywork, exercise therapy or pain management.  
• Following surgery 
• Diagnosed with an orthopaedic conditions such as Arthritis, Hip or Elbow Dysplasia, Spondylosis
• Back problems
• Amputees
• Digestive issues
• Behavioural Changes and more
• Or simply to be PROACTIVE

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Benefits: 
Soft tissue therapy can aid your dog's recovery from injury and alleviate pain from many conditions naturally.  Improvements can often be seen in the first 1 to 3 sessions: 

• Non invasive, natural pain relief
• Helps the dog to have a better quality of life
• Improved mobility, flexibility & range of motion 
• Improves the ability to exercise enabling better weight management
• Support of orthopaedic conditions like Arthritis, Hip Dysplasia, Luxating Patella and Spondylosis, slowing down degradation
• Reduce pain or improve back/spinal conditions
• Improve agility/obedience/flyball performance 
• Can resolve gait irregularities
• Can reduce lameness
• Release trigger points and areas of spasm
• Emotionally and psychologically improve well being 
• Helps to alleviate age related issues
• Decreases fatigue & malaise
• Enhance recovery from injury & operations
• Improve circulation and coat

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Activities of Daily Living
We know ourselves how what we do and how we do it affects our physical wellbeing, such as sitting at a computer, repetative tasks, gardening, gym workouts, a slip or fall, injuries during sports activities for example.  Our dogs are affected by their activities of daily living too, especially repetative movement, slipping, jumping or impact:

• Jumping in and out of the car, or on and off the sofa
• Going up and down stairs
• Slipping on wooden flooring
• Rough play with other dogs
• Repetitive ball/toy chasing
• Sporting injuries such as a slip or fall during agility 

If you would like to know more please do not hesitate to give me a call or email me for further information.  Or why not check out my facebook page to see some of the dogs who have recently visited Out of Step Canine 

NOTE: 
​** My new FB page, Out of Step Canine Whole Body Health pt2 is now up and running, May 2020, my previous page Out of Step Canine Whole Body Health is still available to view and check out reviews but I can no longer access messages or update it. 

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