Why?
- Medication and surgical procedures only form part of the overall healing process.
- Could you imagine you or a family member having knee surgery and not being given some form of post-op rehab program?
- Animal rehabilitation plays an integral part of the recovery process in:
- a recovery of an acute injury (eg. muscle sprain)
- managing a long term condition (eg. arthritis)
- post operative care rehabilitation (eg. cruciate repair)
Our Approach
- Animal Ark adopts a holistic approach to treatment and rehabilitation.
- The focus of the care is to address the underlying cause as opposed to treating symptoms in isolation.
Rehab Program
- A rehabilitation program will be designed to the specific needs of your pet.
- Rehabilitation usually involves multi-disciplines and may include one or more of the following:
- Veterinary advice and care
- Physiotherapy
- Hydrotherapy
- Acupuncture
- Myotherapy
- The initial consultation will involve an assessment of your pet’s needs.
- Animal Ark accepts referrals from other veterinary practices.
- Believe it or not! We also do hydrotherapy on our feline friends.
How Hydrotherapy Helps
- Reduces your dog’s body weight thereby reducing stress on joints, tendons and ligaments; this permits your dog to increase their range of movement and build muscles.
- Provides more resistance than air, which assists in building muscle mass.
- Warmed water increases the temperature of muscles, thereby reducing swelling and soreness.
- Provides a support for unstable or healing structures, allowing your dog to exercise in a controlled environment that reduces the likelihood of injuries.
Hydrotherapy and the Water Treadmill
- Typically involves a series of sessions using our water treadmill.
- With walk on/off facility, the treadmill provides a more natural and controlled environment than a pool requiring hoists and flotation devices.
- You are able to easily encourage and coach your pet.
- Water level is easily adjustable enabling focus on different muscle groups.
- Variable speeds can be increased to the point of agility training.
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