Balance is one of my favorite things to train, in my patients, my kids, and even myself. It's so rewarding to see progress in this area and its typically fun to train. So, 7 sevens reasons why better balance benefits both you and your dog!

1. Keeps your dog young. Balance is foundational to fitness and good health, which delays the onset of signs of aging.

2. Strengthen your dog's core. A strong core leads to better quality of life.

3. Improves performance in sports, and life in general. Whether its chasing birds in the yard or chasing the lure, better balance allows your dog to do better.

4.Protects against injury. This is a big one. This is one of the best reasons why every dog, including yours, would benefit from balance training. This not only includes major injuries and falls but those tweaks and strains of daily life too. Better balance, less likely to get hurt. Period.

5. Reduces Anxiety. Balance training requires concentration and focus.  Achieving and maintaining balance becomes the focus instead of whatever is making your dog feel ill at ease. And exercise in general produces an overall sense of well-being.

6. Boosts the Brain. Studies indicate that exercise wards off the effects of dementia in both people and their canine  pals. Complex movements force the mind to work harder and balance training is a great way to stimulate this.

7. Gives Fast Results. Balance training is quite rewarding in that improvement can be seen quickly. Balance is a learned activity so improvement can be seen in as little as 2 weeks of consistent training 3-4 x week. There's no reason to delay starting your dog's balance training!

One of the problems I encounter frequently in my rehabilitation practice is older dogs with very little muscle mass. Sometimes its a gradual loss of muscle over the years and sometimes its the result of an illness where the dog experienced rapid weight loss. This musclewasting or drop in lean body mass is termed sarcopenia when there is no apparent disease process triggering it. When a chronic debilitating disease is present, this loss of lean body mass is called cachexia.

So, a study published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine in 2012 called "Cachexia and sarcopenia: Emerging syndromes of importance in dogs and cats" discussed the importance of muscle loss in pets.  This muscle loss is associated with a higher morbidity and mortality rate in humans. In humans, sarcopenia usually begins around the age of 30 years and progresses throughout life.  When the muscle loss is linked to chronic disease there is poor appetite, fatigue, muscle atrophy, and weakness. This article showed that dogs with chronic kidney failure that were classified as underweight had shorter survival times as compared with those classified as moderately overweight. This suggests that as in people, renal cachexia affects survival time.

The article went on to state that as sarcopenia and cachexia are studied more, we expect that recommendations regarding the importance of formulating dietary plans to increase metabolism and encouraging supplementation will be given to dog owners. Exercise is important to delay the breakdown of muscle.
 
I couldn't have said it better myself! Eat right and exercise! True for you, true for your dog!

Let's take a few minutes today to discuss geriatric care as it pertains to physical rehabilitation. Senior dogs, geriatric dogs, mature dogs, whatever you want to call them, there are lots of old dogs out there! And it is one of my goals to raise the standard or care for these guys and to increase the quality of their golden years.

Physical rehabilitation offers many benefits for these dogs, physical, mental and emotional. Mentally, physical rehabilitation has been shown to help delay or deter the onset of Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome (see November 2012 for a full blog on how rehab helps this), a condition that is a bit like Dementia for dogs. From an emotional standpoint, physical rehabilitation engages you and your dog in an activity together, something that may have fallen by the wayside as your companion grew older and less capable of doing the activities you did together in bygone days. This helps rekindle a bond between you and your dog and provides positive interaction.You will hopefully look back at those golden years with fondness and good memories once your beloved buddy is gone. And, of course, the physical benefits of increased mobility, increased flexibility, increased strength, increased endurace and less pain!

There are precautions though when working with these old "pups." Be careful to adjust your expectations.Your senior dog isn't going to strengthen at the same rate. The body takes longer to adapt. Your dog won't recover as quickly after a session of exercise either. The exercise needs to be less intense, less strenuous, and there needs to be an appropriate amount of rest time for recovery. There are other concerns too. Older dogs are more likely to have inefficient kidneys, making the risk of dehydration much worse. Older dogs have less efficient cardiopulmonary systems too - the heart and lungs don't adapt as quickly to the demands of exercise. Go slow. Monitor closely. Older dogs are more likely to have other medical conditions too, sometimes undiagnosed, conditions that could affect the older dog's ability to respond to exercise. Balance is sometimes quite poor in older dogs and so if the exercise or rehabilitation program is too demanding it puts your dog at risk for injury. All geriatric rehab plans should involve core stability and balance exercises with the goal of obtaining core stability at a level 2. This is considered essential for your dog to be able to do activities of daily living and prevent falls and injury.

While old dogs are the best, they have special needs when it comes to exercise and physical rehabilitation. It takes longer to see results and the results will not be the same as it would be for a young adult dog. But physical rehabilitation can be very rewarding for both you and your dog in your dog's golden years!

 So, you are wondering if dear Fluffy might benefit from some steps to help her get onto the bed at night. Or maybe Fido seems to have some trouble getting in the car now and you can't really lite all 100 pounds of him. When should you invest in getting a ramp or steps? Ramps and stairs are helpful as a means of regaining strength, balance and mobility for many dogs. There are three main reasons where you might consider getting a ramp or stairs for your dog.

One, your dog recently had surgery. Post-operative rehabilitation using a ramp or stairs is commonly prescribed for
dogs recovering from ligament ruptures, sprains and tears. Dogs recovering from fracture repair surgery or spinal surgery because of disc disease benefit as well. Two, your dog has an ongoing medical condition. Chronic pain associated with arthritis, long term knee problems, chronic disc disease, and others can be better managed through specific exercises using ramps or stairs. The exercises help strengthen which in the long run reduces pain and helps keep your pet mobile  Three, dogs that participate in sports like agility or flyball, and dogs that work in search and rescue or law enforcement benefit from the ongoing training on a ramp to strengthen muscles and improve balance.

While ramps and stairs are helpful to strengthen muscles, manage pain and rehabilitate dogs after surgery they can also be helpful mobility tools for the disabled or old dog too. Ramps can make it safer and easier to get around and help prevent injuries. Ramps or stairs should be sturdy and have nonslip surfaces such as carpet. Be sure to use lots of positive reinforcement (read the word “treats” there) when first introducing the ramp to make it a success!

Those of us with old dogs sometimes wonder where the time went. It was just yesterday, it seems, we were pulling chewed up shoes from our sweet innocent appearing puppy, or going for long hikes with our energetic four legged
companion who raced ahead to check the trail. Where did the time go? When did our dogs get so old? 

One of the first signs of aging is the appearance of gray hairs on the face. While some dogs prematurely gray, most gray hairs will show up around 6-8 years of age. Much older dogs will often have white hairs on their backs, legs, and
even tail too. When you look into your old dog’s eyes, you will likely see a blue-white haziness - aging changes in the lens of the eyes that looks similar to a cataract but is not. It is thought that most dogs get far-sighted as they age. Many don’t seem to see as well in the dark either.

Old dogs tend to experience hearing loss too. Dogs lose their ability to hear low sounds like voices first. Your beloved friend who danced at the door at your arrival a few years ago may now sleep soundly, no longer hearing the car pull in or you calling her.  Gently wake her using vibrations by stomping your feet nearby, as a sudden touch may startle her. Many old dogs don’t hear you calling them back inside after going out to go potty either. As your dog ages, prepare for this by flicking the lights on and off at night while calling her inside. When she loses the ability to hear you she will still know you are signaling a return to the house then.

Gray hair, poor vision and hearing loss, while signs of old age, are also signs of a dog whose given many good years to her people. As I said before, old dogs are the best!

Whatever you call it, many geriatric dogs suffer  from a decline in brain function. Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome is a similar disease process to Alzheimer’s in people. Studies and research indicate that the use of nutrition and supplements is proven effective in both treating and preventing this disease process. And as in, people, physical therapy plays a role as well.
 
There are 4 areas where we see changes in your dog that are consistent with this disease: 1) disorientation in the
home/yard  2) changes in social interactions with the human family members  3)  a decline in housetraining  and 4) changes to the sleep-wake cycle. Your dog must have a least one area of change at least once a week for at least a month. It is found more commonly in neutered male dogs but affects breeds of all shapes and sizes. The older the dog is the more likely you are to see changes consistent with cognitive decline. And once signs are noted the disease progresses within 6-18 months. As in Alzheimers, research has shown dogs have memory deficits and forget trained behavior.
 
A complete mix of antioxidants is proven effective in reducing and preventing this condition. Antioxidants also have  anti-inflammatory properties which help too.  Antioxidants and certain fruits and vegetables have been shown to improve cognitive performance in 2-8 weeks.  Additionally, ginkgo biloba, L-deprenyl and Omega 3 fatty acids help. 
  
Physical Rehabilitation focuses on practical skills and increasing cognitive activity. Exercises such as senior dog
socialization classes, scent discrimination, “safe” obstacle courses, and hide and seek games help engage the pet’s brain and encourage social interaction. Exercise itself has been shown to modify the brain’s function as well but it is
not completely understood how. As is true for so many things, proper nutrition and exercise can prevent the condition or slow its progression once its started.

As I continue the series on how old dogs are the best, let's talk about these dogs with big strong shoulders and chest muscles that taper to a tiny rear end with scrawny little chicken legs. These dogs usually have trouble getting up after lying down, aren't able to jump well,  have difficulty going up steps and may even fall occasionally. Its frequently the large and giant breed dogs but it can happen to any dog. Its a loss of hind leg muscle and strength, and its usually from arthritis or hip dysplasia.

Dogs are designed to carry about 2/3 of their body weight on the front end and only 1/3 on their back legs. They are jokingly described as "60/40 front wheel drive." But these old dogs I am referring to are usually carrying 75% or more of their weight on the front in order to reduce pain in the back end. I've even seen a few dogs that were closer to 90%, and while walking on the front legs is a nice party trick, its not something your dog should do on a regular basis!  These dogs shift weight away from the pain in the back end and use their rear legs less. This results in a loss of hind limb strength. This forces your dog to shift more weight forward as now there is not only pain but also weakness. This cycle continues until your dog is using his front end almost entirely to rise into a standing  position. He stops jumping completely. He doesn't want to go for walks anymore. And then, his front end starts to break down. His elbow starts to hurt, he develops chronically sore upper back muscles, and now he just doesn't want to move at all. Sound familiar? That's how they end up with a skinny backside. Sometimes, it becomes a life or death situation.

So now what? Can we stop the cycle? Can we reverse it or is your dog too far gone? Could it be prevented? Yes, to all the above!! Unless your dog is paralyzed those muscules still have the capacity to function! They must be retrained  and rebuilt with the proper nutrition and the proper exercises to do so. Chronic pain must be managed. Old dogs can learn new tricks (and its actually really good mental stimulation too!) Got an old dog with a skinny backside? Call me. Got a young dog just diagnosed with hip dysplasia? Call me. Its never too late, or too soon, to do something about it!

I have received a request to provide more information on diseases and conditions common in old dogs. I have accepted the challenge! So I begin a series on geriatric care for our aging canine population and the pet parents who love and care for them.

Old dogs are the bes  t!Typically by the time a dog reaches what is regarded as his senior years, usually classified as starting around 7 years but its breed and size dependent, he has earned the status of beloved family member, trusted best friend, and is sometimes even the "favorite" (but don't tell the other dogs.) With advancements in medicine and surgery, and excellent nutrition resources, today's pets are living longer lives. Unfortunately, they are living long enough now to get such things as cancer, kidney failure, arthritis, heart disease, and many more problems directly affecting the length and the quality of their golden years. Many times, we as pet parents, want to spare our beloved companion of 10, 12, even 15 years from a lot of medical tests, invasive procedures, and lengthy hospital stays.We know we wouldn't want our last weeks or months being poked with needles and popping pills. But sometimes, we give up too soon, we don't see other options. I am here to tell you that there are options. Both physical rehabilitation and adjustments to nutrition and diet can improve your pet's golden years, and in certain cases, dramatically so. Remember, old age itself is not a disease!

Every old dog, as trusted friend and family member, deserves a nice retirement that's free of pain. In this series we will explore some of the more common conditions seen in older dogs and how rehab and nutrition can be used to reduce pain, increase mobility and enhance your dog's senior years!