Hydrotherapy: Amber’s Story

Amber used to chase wallabies. She didn’t ever catch them, but every time she saw one, she’d optimistically bound after them, feathery gold tail the only thing visible above the long grass.

One day, while trotting back, tongue lolling, she suddenly yelped and started limping. That was her first torn cruciate ligament. She already had some arthritis in a front paw, but that hadn’t stopped her from running. The torn ligament did – particularly when she tore another one a year later.

After surgery, the ligaments seemed to take a long time to heal, and she kept limping. The vet recommended I take her to hydrotherapy. I had no idea what was involved, but I hated seeing her looking so uncomfortable, so I thought I’d give it a try.

I knew it was going to be tricky, because Amber doesn’t like water. She certainly looked very alarmed when she was placed into a swimming pool in a harness. Why was I trying to drown her? And why, when she was swimming so hard, wasn’t she getting anywhere? (elastic ropes)

On the other hand, she enjoyed the water treadmill right from the start. She considers it to be hers now and becomes quite annoyed when there’s another dog in it. Over time, she even became quite relaxed about paddling in the swimming pool.

Amber has been going to hydrotherapy for years. Friends and family are surprised that we keep taking her, but the difference is amazing. If she has to miss her sessions for more than two weeks, she starts to limp.

We’ve witnessed some dramatic improvements for others, too. We’ve seen dogs carried in, seemingly paralysed in the back and legs, only to see them walking unaided in the treadmill a few weeks later, looking quite proud of themselves. Marion, who owns the ‘Canine Fitness Centre’, where we go, has an unflappable competence that makes everything run very smoothly and miracles seem normal.

We’ve met dogs of all sizes there – right up to wolfhounds, which can just about touch the bottom of the swimming pool. There’s a hoist to lift the heavy dogs into the pool, but Amber has never had to put up with that indignity. She is lifted in and out, as befits the princess she considers herself to be.

To anyone who has a four-legged family member having trouble walking, I can only refer you to the picture on this post and point out that Amber is thirteen years old, and has had major problems with three-quarters of her legs. No-one seeing her bouncing along the beach would know it.

She doesn’t chase wallabies now – mainly because she can’t hear them or see them too well any more – but she walks better than I do. (Marion has offered to let me in the treadmill as well, but I haven’t taken her up on in it yet.)

One of our forum readers (thanks Crankygoat!) mentioned in a thread that he used the Buddy System. I had a look and noticed they had a bungee attachment, aptly named the Lunge Buster, and I wondered if that would make any difference.

The only way to find out was to try one!

When the Buddy System arrived, the first thing I did was put the waistband on and adjust it to fit. This was easy enough. I noticed that the leash attached to a loop on the belt that was free to move around my middle.  I thought this was a very clever idea. Guinness likes to run in front of me and weave all over the place, so none of the trees or poles miss out on his attentions. This loop arrangement meant he could move across ahead of me from left to right without pulling me; the loop moved freely along the waistband.  The system came with a second such loop so if I wanted to let him run free, I could then clip the other end of the leash to my waist. Nice design.

The other thing I liked was the clip that attached to the collar. It swivelled freely so Guinness could move around me and behind me without his leash twisting.

Now, the bungee. One end of the bungee clipped onto the waist loop, and the other attached to the leash. It looked just great, nice and stretchy yet it felt strong; I had confidence it would hold my 26kg Kelpie when he pulled ahead of me.

I popped the waistband on, and I attached the clip to Guinness’s head collar. The leash was easy to lengthen, which I found handy while we were running. I underestimated how much length Guinness would need and found myself almost running on his heels.  I had no trouble making the leash longer without even breaking my stride.

We did the Parkrun with the Buddy System but pulled out after 2km. It was an extremely hot day and Guinness just wasn’t having fun.  There was so much radiated heat from the concrete and from the river. However, that 2km was long enough to give the system a work out.

The Buddy System worked a treat.  Guinness could meander around me, and pull this way and that, and the bungee stopped me being pulled hard. I was very quick to feel comfortable with it. The join between the bungee and the rest of the leash was perfectly positioned for me to reach and grab on to; it worked as a handle if I needed to pull Guinness out of the path of another runner.

The verdict? I love the Buddy System. It’s comfortable to run in, it absorbs the pull from my dog and it allows him to move freely from side to side. I’m certainly going to continue using it when I run with Guinness – now I just need to figure out what to do with my hands!

North America readers can obtain the Buddy System from Buddysys.com. Australian readers, keep an eye out – we’re hoping to have some stock here in the not too distant future.

“Blind and deaf? What quality of life will he have? He’d be better off dead.” That was the response I got many times over when I told people about the new puppy I was getting. Later it was “Oh, the poor thing…” when they were introduced. Now that he’s grown, people ask what his name is and what do I do with a handicap dog. And that’s when I get to smile and say : “This is Kandoo, and he can do everything.”

He can go up and down stairs, navigate the back yard, swim at the lake and come when the porch light blinks. He sleeps in bed, goes to dog events, has even hiked on the Appalachian Trail. He’s 65lbs of bouncing border collie love, has never met a stranger and everything is his favorite, except for running. Running is his very favorite.

The moment I lace up my shoes he’s at the door, hoping to be my running buddy of the day. I clip on his leash and off we go – his head down, a steady trot that eats up the miles, and a big smile on his face. We work some hills and do a few sprint sets. Six miles later we’re back at the front door, still smiling.

While I have several ‘normal’ dogs at home, I prefer running with my handicap fellows, Kandoo and Will (who is also blind and deaf). Unlike my other dogs, these guys are not distracted by cars, squirrels or cows. They don’t pull towards other runners or the neighbor’s terrier. Much like a horse’s reins, they use leash cues for guidance and are trained with touch commands on different parts of their body. They’ve been blind and deaf since birth, so to Kandoo and Will the lack of sight and sound is not a handicap, it is just the way life is – and they still can do anything.

Parkruns are free timed 5k runs which are conducted by volunteers, and are held in many countries around the world. There are three parkruns in Australia, with a fourth on the cards for next year.

We’ve been trying to get along to a parkrun for a few weeks now, but work commitments and weather haven’t made it possible. Yesterday was the day!

The run was in New Farm Park, Brisbane, and the route followed the boardwalk along the riverbank. It was flat, and lots of people were out walking or cycling, enjoying the fine weather and the view. We were made to very welcome by the organisers; it’s always nice to see people relaxed about dogs joining in a fun run.

As usual, we started at the back of the field and just loped along. We finished in 35-38 minutes, and stayed for coffee afterwards. A thoroughly enjoyable morning with friendly people and a nice place to run. The dogs enjoyed the attention too! We’ll go back whenever we can, and are looking forward to helping to establish Sandgate parkrun later this year, which is a lot closer to home.

To find out more about free parkruns in your area, and to register, visit this site: Parkrun

What should you do if your dog has such an injury? In Sinner’s case, there was no foreign body sticking out so I chose to play the waiting game. I cleaned it thoroughly with dilute iodine, and I didn’t bandage it. I think a bandage would have lasted two seconds!

There were two things I was looking for. Firstly, I was looking for an increase in redness, pain and swelling that would suggest the wound had become infected. The other thing was for the wound to get better, then start to worsen again. This suggests that there actually is something still inside the wound.

In this case, Sinner was fine and his foot healed up perfectly. The last time he did this, he seemed to recover then two days later he couldn’t walk on the foot again. Off to the vet, who removed a tiny sliver of glass from his footpad. I said some rude things about young blokes who smash empty beer bottles on the footpath!

What you do under these circumstances is up to you. I was at an advantage because I’m a vet and know what may or may not happen. You may choose to do the same thing, or you may be more comfortable having your dog just checked out by your vet. Either is fine. Considering how much our dogs use their footpads, they don’t injure them very much at all.

Charlie is about 2.5 years old. We re-homed him in summer 2010 when he was 1. How the previous owners could gave him up I have no idea, as he’s just the cutest and well behaved little bundle of energy. I think that’s probably where the problem lay though, as he has a LOT of energy, so needs a LOT of exercise to burn it off. Sure, he will sleep all day if you let him but after a couple of days he goes stir crazy sat around the house.

So, after a few months of long walks in the Yorkshire countryside I decided at the age of 38 I needed to get fit, and took up running again last Autumn after a 10 year break. As I was starting pretty much from scratch with a C25K program I didn’t think it would be an issue taking Charlie along, despite him being below the age many vets recommend starting them running. Let’s face it, on a 5 mile walk he runs about 10 miles back and forth it I let him, so a 3 mile jog/walk at my slow pace wouldn’t do any harm.

So Charlie has been my running partner for a little over a year. In that time I’ve gone from a half hour walk/jog to running a 10k in just over 40 minutes & HM in 1:42, and Charlie has been with me practically every step of the way. He’s not done any races, but he does all but a very few of my training runs, including a 1:44 Half Marathon rehearsal run. The only times he doesn’t come are if it’s extremely hot out (not often in Yorkshire!) or if I am doing a fartlek or similar, as he gets frustrated with the constant pace changes. The rest of the time he LOVES it and I love having him around. He’s the perfect running partner, happy to go for a PB, or a long slow training run, and never complains I’m running too fast (but he did complain I was too slow in the early days!). On the tougher days when I really can’t be arsed he gives me a reason to get out in the first place, and some gentle encouragement on the trail. I just wish he’d learn to go before we get going, as stopping to clean up after him wrecks my average pace!

The vet confirmed at his last check up that he is as fit as a runner’s dog, and has no issues caused by running early in life as we were sensible and built things up slowly. He’s also one of the best behaved dogs either the vet or myself have met, which I’m sure is at least partly down to the balance running brings to his life.  So we are both fighting fit and busy training for my next race, a half marathon in January. In the mean time my wife, Lisa wondered what the fuss is about and has taken up running too since this summer, so some days Charlie gets a gentle warm up with her and the lead handed over to me at the door when they get back. So far he’s got her up to running 10k where she got under the hour for the first time last month!

I just need to figure out how I am going to get him enrolled on a UK Atheletics coaching course now!

The hardest part is keeping your dog quiet to let them recover fully. They feel back to normal within a day or two of their operation, but they really shouldn’t run for a bit longer. The movement of the skin around the surgical site may make healing a little slower, and the increase in blood pressure may lead to a bit of bleeding.

It’s hard, because your dog wants to run but doesn’t understand why he can’t. Guinness had the most mournful look when I left with Cinnabar for a run. I found that the best way to help him through this period of forced rest was to start going for slow walks as soon as I felt he was up to it, and also do things to keep him mentally active. Adding a bit of extra obedience or trick training to his day seemed to alleviate the boredom.

Whatever you do, don’t start back training before your vet gives you the all clear. If you make things worse, your dog will have to sit out for longer, and that will only increase his frustration, and yours.

Bobbie is a Border Collie owned by Jacquie Gibson. He and his sister were surrendered to the vet surgery where Jacqui works, when they were only 6 weeks old.  Sparkles found a home on the land, and Bobbie went to live with the Gibson family in Rothwell.

Even though Bobbie was well socialised in puppy pre-school and obedience classes, he grew up to be quite anxious, and fearful of other dogs. He would snap at them because he was frightened, and would glue himself to Jacquie’s leg.

Further training didn’t help, so Bobbie started on anti-anxiety medication to help reduce his stress around other dogs.

Bobbie started running with a local Pooch to 5k group only 4 weeks ago. Since then, he has learned to get on well with the other dogs in his group, and cheerfully trots up to say hello to his canine running friends. Not only that, but he is comfortable approaching and being approached by other dogs he meets on his runs. Jacquie feels he is a much happier dog and he no longer takes his anti-anxiety  medication.

There is plenty of evidence that exercise is good for people with depression and anxiety because of the endorphins that are released. I can’t find any mention of endorphins in dogs, but I’m sure the same thing happens when they go for a run. This is a sample size of one, but it certainly appears that exercise plays a big role in easing anxiety in dogs.

NB Never stop any prescription medication unless under the guidance of your veterinarian.

While we were running I stopped and took his rectal temperature every 5 minutes. He was less than impressed. I was a bit worried about people thinking I was weird, so I tried to do it behind a bush. I’m not sure this helped. What would you think if you saw someone behind a bush, having a close look at their dog’s bottom?

Anyway, it was a summer day, clear blue skies, no breeze and about 5pm in the afternoon. The scary thing was that within 15 minutes, Guinness’s body temperature was over 40 degrees C. For our American readers, that’s 104 degrees F. Definitely getting into the danger zone.

Admittedly, Guinness is black and soaks up solar radiation very easily. However, it’s worth noting how quickly his temperature began to rise. He was panting but would have cheerfully kept running with me. I stopped the run and let him have a paddle in the lake, and sat for a while in the shade of a tree. He was fine.

This needs to act as a reminder to us as we approach the Aussie summer. We are ultimately responsible for our dog’s health while we are running. They can’t sweat to cool down, and heat stroke is a very real possibility. I have personally known a dog to die of heat stroke after a run with her owner.

If you’re in doubt, err on the side of caution and leave your dog at home.

Cani-cross is cross-country running with your dog for all breeds, any size, big or small. In the UK there are organized events and races for you and your dog(s) to run together.

The running can be done with a conventional collar and lead but it is easier for you and your dog if you use a cani-cross belt for you, a cani-cross harness for your dog and a cani-cross bungee elastic lead connecting you and your dog. The belt means that your arms can swing freely and naturally; the harness is attached to the dog’s powerful chest rather than its neck and the elasticity of the lead absorbs sudden surges by the dog.

Cani-cross events are organized events for human/dog teams. Many races are around 5 km distance with short courses of 1 km for young children and adults who are just starting off running and who want to have a go. The races are organized in different classes according to the ages of the humans doing the running. Races are organized so that the runners leave at timed intervals rather than all together.

The events are advertised online and you apply online to join several days in advance

There are also some cani-cross clubs which arrange for more advanced and fitter cani-cross runners to join in races with dogless cross country runners. Normally the cani-cross runners set off first so that the dogs do not get in the way the ordinary runners.

All the organizations stress the importance of preparing both yourself and your dog for running by not being too ambitious when running, especially for the dog who will run until it drops.

If the dog is unfit then it needs to build up its stamina over several weeks. An unfit dog can suffer damage to joints and muscles if pushed too hard, and it is especially vulnerable to overheating, so be careful in hot weather, and it is also essential that the dog has plenty of water available to drink. Check your dog in the first half hour after running as this is the most dangerous time for overheating.

Above all else cani-cross creates the opportunity for you and your dog to have fun!

I’d love to organise something like this for Aussie dogs in winter. Mind you, the concept of being attached to Guinness by a harness as he flies down hills is quite daunting.

Do we have any UK readers who are involved in Cani-Cross? We’d love to hear your stories!

Picture courtesy of xornalcerto