(My independent directed study) Featuring natural medicines but mainly focused on chiropractic as my main research.
April 2, 2016
Since I have job shadowed Dr. Kelly Perrott for quite a few patients now I thought I would share what I’ve learnt about the process of helping them.
First when meeting a new client you would ask for all the pets recent vet documents, such as any x-rays. When getting to know a new patient this gives the chiropractor some basic ideas of where to problem areas would most likely be for that particular animal.
Second you would ask for the client to fill out a survey with all sorts of questions about their pet. Questions could include “Has your pet been acting different in any way recently? If so, what is it?”, “Does your dog ever show any aggression? And if so has he/she always shown this aggression?”, “Has your dog been panting or pacing more than usual?”. The chiropractor will also asked general questions about the animal’s lifestyle and environment.
After all this data is collected the chiropractor will have a much better idea of what the dog could be dealing with, and will be ready to go over the dog. The dog will then be looked over, every joint from head to toe. Anything joint not aligned will be put back in place. Any parts/joints in the body out of place will recorded on there patient chart. That way the next time the patient comes in the chiropractor will have a reminder of what that animals main problem is and where he/she should be focussing.
The appointment then comes to the end. The client will have time to ask any questions. And will then will receive a recommendation date on when they should return.
That is the basic process of helping new clients and patients as I chiropractor. Of course every time the client comes this process will become faster and easier because the chiropractor will grow to get to know the dog and know what to usually expect.
While shadowing these appointments I realized how nice it is that the chiropractor really forms a bond with each animal that they help as well as with the owners.
March 7, 2016
In just a few days I have found loads of information, including true facts about getting young puppies adjusted. As I go away for a dog show in England tomorrow I figured I’d put all what I found down now. I found the research that I did very interesting and useful to myself for future breeding purposes, raising pups, as well as for when I get my next puppy. This information should also be valued by any future puppy owners. Most of this information goes for human babies as well, and it made me wish this type of natural medicine was more commonly used when I was young!
After reading lots about both perspectives of this, in my opinion having young pups adjusted is a must because it will ensure that they grow properly as they get older and it will benefit them later on in life. I checked in with Dr. Kelly Perrott on this, and having the experiencing of being in practice for 7 years, she agreed with this.
First off, note this also goes for kittens and foals, puppies should definitely be taken for a maintenance chiropractor appointment when they’re between 5 and 10 weeks old. Puppies are very loose because their joints are not yet completely formed and their bones are of course still growing. Because of this they are very prone to subluxations, and taking them to see the chiropractor will reduce any risks of injuries and joint degeneration. At that young age there is always going to be adjustments that can be made because of joints becoming unlined from going through birth, possibly getting squished by the mother after birth, and being nudged by the litter mates.
For dogs, pet owners biggest mistake is not realizing that puppies’ joints don’t actually close and bone isn’t finished growing until 2 years old. This means their body is very loose up until this time. We all know puppies love to crash around the house and roughhouse. This is all about their fun puppyhood but once you’re informed about chiropractic care it’s almost cringe worthy to watch knowing all the joints that could be getting pushed out of place when this is going on. We can’t stop our puppies from having their fun, but once they are at that age of acting like a bull in a china shop what we can do is take them to frequent chiropractic appointments. This will insure that everything remain aligned for proper growth.
Breeds will vary but after the 2 year mark there’s no extreme need to be going to the chiropractor as often, unless you want to be more cautious, which is perfectly fine too. However, like I said, breeds will vary. After 2 years old some breeds will completely mellow out, meaning there not as likely to injure themselves, or need a chiropractor. Other breeds will still be very hyperactive at this age. In that case you may want to consider hang maintenance chiropractic appointment about every 3 weeks to a month depending on the dog. Overall, after 2 years of age, it’s healthiest for any dog to be taken to see a chiropractor once a month. This will keep them healthy and feeling great.
I also asked myself if all the info I researched above would have the same importance to small and large breeds. The answer I found to this is that it does and it doesn’t, depending on the age and environment of the dog. When I said that it’s best for puppies to be adjusted sometime between 5 and 10 weeks old this applies to all sizes of breeds. This is because their bodies all go through the same stress of being birthed, and they all have the factor of getting bumped around by the mother and litter mates. The size of the breed doesn’t at this stage, none of them will have fully developed joints or bones, meaning their bodies are all very loose. It’s when the dogs get up to the 2 year mark where it makes a difference. Large breeds, being heavier, put a lot of weight on their joints. For large breeds, if something is out of place their weight will be putting way more pressure on it than a small dog’s would. This makes it a lot more sore and evident in a large dog. Also, even if a small dog had something out of align their light weight wouldn’t put much pressure on it and it wouldn’t be anywhere near as likely for it to get pushed further out of alignment like a large dog’s would. In summary, it’s still nice for all dog’s to get fix up and adjusted but it is more necessary to get a large dog done rather than a small dog. However, we can’t say this is the case all the time, factoring in the individual dog’s living environment. For example, a giant breed such as a St. Bernard may be a couch potato all day and just get out for a half hour walk. On the other hand, a small breed such as a Jack Russell could be on a competitive team of flyball or agility, both sports very demanding on the joints and body. Now, even though the St. Bernard is a giant breed with a heavy weight, since it’s always lazy on its own and only goes for half hour walks the Jack Russell getting lots of vigorous exercise and competing in a demanding sport is more likely to be in need of a chiropractic adjustment.
March 5, 2016
A question I’ve thought of today is “Why puppies should be adjusted shortly after birth to promote healthy growing? Is it of same importance to small and large breeds?” Through dog friends on Facebook and such I’ve heard many different things on the subject. I’ve seen some people say that adjustments could be too hard on young puppies, and others saying it’s good and should be necessary. This is right in my area of interest so for the next few days I’m going to research it, teach myself more about the actual facts of it, and if I get the chance to ask my dog’s chiropractor about it.
February 13, 2016
In my research so far I’ve discovered how all the alignments in the body (which of course goes for humans too) not only affects physical health, it effects things in the immune system as well. This is because the nervous system, endocrine, and immune system a greatly linked together. The nervous system, which includes the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, control mostly everything in the body. They communicate with endocrine and immune tissue to start chemical reactions that keep us healthy. So being adjusted could mean less head aches and less runny noses. Getting adjusted has also been found to decrease blood pressure, relieve anxiety, and reduce inflammatory cytosines and pain.
This is information I’ve recorded from shadowing my dog’s chiropractor, Dr. Kelly Perrott.
January 30, 2016
The following is an article I’ve written explaining exactly what equine and canine chiropractic means and what it is for those who don’t know about it.
Many people don’t know about equine or canine chiropractic yet. Equine and canine chiropractors have actually been in practice since the early 1900s, however natural medicines for animals, as well as for humans, have really started becoming popular in the past few years. Even though I have been surrounded by animals my whole life and raised with them I hadn’t heard of canine chiropractic until 2013 when I was recommended to take my Newfoundland dog in, my first show dog. This is when I became very interested in the subject, did a lot of research on it, and decided that it’s what I want to do as my career.
So what is equine and canine chiropractic? “Equine” would be horse chiropractic therapy and “Canine” would be chiropractic therapy for dogs. If you have ever been in to see a chiropractor you should know that it is the exact same process for the dogs and horses. Of course these animal’s anatomy is very different from humans, this is why it is a separate specially trained profession to be an equine and canine chiropractor. Some chiropractors will choose to specialize in just dogs or just horses or both.
Taking your pets to see a chiropractor will greatly benefit their health. Adjustments involve manual manipulation of the specific animal’s affected joints, and restoring the animal’s mobility and function. Chiropractic adjustments can even solve the symptoms to illness… Sometimes parts of the body can be pushed out of place, hindering the body’s ability to heal itself naturally. Chiropractic adjustments are great to have done on animals of all ages but senior animals will greatly benefit from it because it can help keep the animal physically active, which is extremely important to keep them up and going and healthy. In chiropractic care, issues in the body can be corrected before we would even visually notice any symptoms. By keeping the body perfectly aligned our animals will always feel their best and be able to exercise all of their muscles properly.
January 17, 2016
Are alternative medicines and procedures a viable alternative to surgery?
This is something that has become questioned more often than ever before. Throughout my independent directed study I hope to give my perspective on it after my research and hopefully educate anyone who is curious.
