Ways to Help Relieve your Dogs Pain Naturally

Modern Medicine is a wonderful tool that we are extremely thankful for. However, there are many natural ways to help relieve your dogs pain as well. From Massage to swimming there are many ways to help "outside the box".  We would love to have you try some of the below and let us know how they help. 

1. Massage- Reduces muscle tension and promotes circulation to decrease pain and restore function. It even enhances your bond with your dog.

2. Stretching- increases tissue extensibility/flexibility. This can be achieved actively or passively. Stretching can activate your parasympathetic nervous system (responsible for relaxation) and increase blood flow to the muscle to promote healing. It has also been shown to release endorphin in the brain that reduce pain and boost mood.
One of my favorites is called Cookie Stretching- where you draw your dogs nose toward their side or hip with a treat to stretch out their spine and abdominals.

3. Range of Motion- is the motion performed at a specific joint. Normal range of motion is needed for normal movement. Decreases in range of motion cause uneven wear on the joint. Performing range of motion can help lubricate your dogs dry arthritic joints to allow them to move better.

4. Walking- Just as for humans walking is a great low impact exercise that keeps your muscles and joints feeling lose. Walking also helps your dog maintain an ideal body weight which is one of the most important factors in helping your dog live a long active life.

5. Swimming- when dogs swim they use increased range of motion in the limbs, helping keep the joints lubricated, in turn decreasing pain. It is also great for overweight dogs to help them lose weight without the concussive forces of walking or exercising on land.

Have you tried any of the tools listed above? We would love to hear how they helped!