I completed my Animal Chiropractic certification through Parker University's program in Dallas, Texas in 2023. After five months, 215 hours, lots of travel, hours of studying, testing, sweating (Texas is HOT), and a few sleepless nights, I am now able to serve chiropractic to our four-legged friends! I am also certified through the American Veterinary and Chiropractic Association, as I completed the equivalent of their board exams in October of last year. In this blog post, I dive into what animal chiropractic is and why it is so beneficial for the quadrupeds you love most. Hint- anything I say about animal chiropractic here, is true about chiropractic for people, too. Therefore I won't be surprised if after you read this post, you AND your pet wind up in the office to get your spines checked for subluxation.
Just like with humans, Animal Chiropractic focuses on the preservation and health of the neuro-musculo-skeletal system. Why? Nerves control everything that happens in your animals. Anything adversely affecting the nervous system will have detrimental effects that will resonate throughout the entire body. The command centers of the nervous system are the brain and spinal cord which are protected by the spine. The spine is a complex framework of bones (vertebra), ligaments, muscles and nerves. If the movement and biomechanics of the vertebra become dysfunctional, they can interfere with the performance of the nerves that are branching off of the spinal cord and going to the all of the muscles and organs.
As this occurs, your animal can lose normal mobility; resulting in stiffness, tension, pain and even organ dysfunction. Additionally, when normal movement is affected, and left unattended, it will ultimately impact your animal’s entire wellbeing and quality of life.
The nervous system also coordinates the body’s ability to heal and regulate itself. Trauma, overuse, or underuse, may cause the vertebra of the spine to become fixed, and the surrounding muscles and ligaments may become compromised and inflamed. Nerves could become trapped in these damaged tissues, or in the passages they use to exit the spine. Their signals become unable to adequately reach their destinations. When they don’t, these impaired structures lose their ability to heal. This can directly and dramatically impact your animal’s health.
Symptoms of spinal fixation are vast, and may include pain, spasm, sensitivity to touch, lameness, gait abnormalities and postural compromise. These are the symptoms that are the easiest to detect, but there are often more subtle signs present even before these ones show up. It may take a trained doctor to distinguish some of the more subtle changes that occur when organs begin to malfunction, but that is exactly what animal chiropractors are trained to do.
This is the beginning of a more modern, comprehensive approach to your animal’s healthcare. It is an effective and valuable means of restoring and maintaining their strength, vigor and well-being. And by exploring and treating the root causes of your animal’s aches, pains and illnesses, will ensure maximum improvement, top performance and an exceptional quality of life for the animal companions you love.
Sweeney Family Chiropractic has branched out to include Sweeney Animal Chiropractic. We have updated our extra exam room to be a pet friendly space for small animals. If you have a horse or other large animal that you want to have assessed for chiropractic subluxations, we can arrange a day and time for me to come to you. I am so excited to be adding this new part of the practice so that I can now truly serve the WHOLE family. I can't wait to meet your most beloved pets and help them to optimize their health and well-being.
Commenti