Ava Frick, DVM

Has your pet ever…Had problems getting up and down? Been anesthetized for surgery? Experienced any reoccurring conditions such as vomiting, respiratory or urinary infections, diarrhea or constipation? Had seizures or neurological problems? Is your pet over seven years of age?

If you answered YES to even ONE of these questions, then chiropractic can help your pet. Chiropractic is a drugless method of health care. It deals with the nervous system housed inside the spinal column. Nerves supply energy to everything in the body. These nerves exit the spinal cord through areas between vertebrae (the name of each spinal bone) and traverse through tissues to every muscle, joint, and organ of the body. Chiropractic maintains that adequate nerve supply is essential to proper body function.

Subluxation is the term used to describe a misalignment of the joints, whether it is in the back, leg, paw or skull (as in TMJ). A chiropractic adjustment is aimed at correcting the subluxation and restoring proper functioning of the nervous system. In so doing, we eliminate the cause of a dysfunction, not just the symptoms.

There are many reasons for a subluxation to occur. Obvious injuries resulting from occurrences such as an automobile accident, falls or slips, play with another animal or running into a wall. But subluxations can be minor and go unnoticed. Agility, schitzhund, and police dogs exert a lot of strain on their bodies and joints. The birthing process can lead to subluxations if the spine is subjected to abnormal forces at delivery; drugs and stresses are also causes of subluxation. As an animal ages, resiliency declines and stresses naturally accumulate in the spine.

Good chiropractic care may take time because the body must heal itself after restoration of nerve function. Animals recover rapidly as a rule, however, older animals or those with more serious conditions take more time. Many geriatric patients have treatments on a monthly to bimonthly basis. Owners do this for their older pets because they can see improvements in their pet's movement, facial expression, appetite, and overall well being. One client remarked about the immediate smile that returned to her dog's face, which had been missing for quite some time.

The speed of recovery depends on these factors:

   --Duration of the problem; more elapsed time since onset usually mandates longer recovery.

   --Age and physical condition; older animals are slower to heal. It is not possible to return a 14-year-old dog to puppyhood, but his quality of life can be greatly improved with chiropractic care.

   --Amount of tissue damage; severe tissue damage may not be repairable. Healing may be slow and minimal with any treatment, in cases such as spinal cord trauma or ruptured disc(s).

   --Client / patient cooperation; generally, pets soon realize the treatment is making their body feel much better. Animals are in tune with how their body wants to be, so they enjoy the adjustments and treatments. The "layers" of malfunction that have been in place will take time to be pealed off. If the animal is removed from care too soon, optimal results may not be achieved.

Eliminating the cause of pain, rather than just treating your pet with pain medications, is a good reason to want Chiropractic. In addition to three unique forms of chiropractic adjusting, I also utilize other modalities to aid in returning patients to optimal health and function. Thearputic ultrasound, electrical stimulation, laser, low energy photon therapy (LEPT) are a few of the ways that I can improve nerve and body function. These target the soft tissue (muscle, ligaments, vessels, lymphatics, disc, ETC.) structures that support or feed the body. It's the muscles that move bones and muscle tone must be optimal for the bones to function properly.