Hydrotherapy offers a range of benefits for your dog’s health, recovery & lifestyle.
Medical jargon can be confusing - so we’ll try to break it down and make it easy to understand. Canine hydrotherapy helps our furry friends to recover from injury or surgery and in the management of long-term joint disease, arthritis and obesity. Its main goal is to aid a speedier recovery and to help prevent further issues.
Hydrotherapy is a controlled, non weight bearing or reduced weight bearing exercise in warm water.
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Pre and post-operative orthopedic conditions
Neurological conditions
Arthritis
Hip/Elbow Dysplasia
Soft Tissue injuries
Degenerative and medical conditions
Weight Management
Pain Management
Balance Training
General Fitness
Advanced Age
Mental Health and Well being
Benefits of Swimming
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Adult dogs sleep 12-14 hours each day on average, so they're bursting with pent-up energy. Walking around the neighborhood or throwing a ball in a park is great, but swimming burns more energy and is gentler on the body and joints. Just 5 minutes of swimming is equal to about a 20-30 minute walk, and your dog doesn't even have to swim hard for the whole 30-minute pool session to get a good workout and have fun.
Dogs do not inherently know how to swim, so we we offer qualified instructors that can assist your dog by making the most of the time using appropriate swimming techniques to increase their fitness level.
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Swimming is a high-intensity cardio activity that can quickly exhaust your pet and burn excess energy. Five to ten minutes of continuous swimming for your dog is comparable to a challenging 20 to 30 minute walk.
High intensity cardio workouts for dogs are helpful because it aids fat burning, strengthens the heart and lungs, and is excellent for stress relief. Cardio exercise reduces the chance of heart attack, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, and several types of cancer just as it would in a human.
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Swimming is a whole-body workout for your dog, as they are using all of their muscle groups and limbs to propel them through the water.
The rear limbs are used more than the front in most forms of physical activity, such as walking, running, and leaping, but swimming emphasizes the front limbs, which helps to rectify imbalance in muscle development.
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Swimming greatly improves a dog’s range of movement & mobility. Since there is low impact on the joints, we can reduce swelling & stiffness while improving strength & stamina by increasing blood flow to the affected areas.
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Pre-operative hydrotherapy can help build up supporting muscles before an operation. It also ensures the dog is comfortable with water before their operation to avoid stress when their post-op care begins.
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Swimming not only helps physical health, but it is also helpful for emotional wellness. Dogs, like people, require mental stimulation in the form of play and activities that differ from their normal routines. Dogs are naturally sociable creatures, and different forms of social enrichment are essential for their mental health.
Often, dogs are constrained by life in a small apartment, or walking on a leash. Swimming gives dogs the opportunity to release all of their pent-up energy without feeling confined.
As an added benefit, a tired dog is more likely to anticipate returning home and resting, allowing them to feel the effects of a good night's sleep. -
Swimming can help alleviate pain from stuff joints and increase muscles which support the joints. It also provides mental stimulation and fun.
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Even if your dog is not recovering from an injury or surgery, Hydrotherapy can help to maintain a dog’s overall health and prevent future issues. Swimming works every major muscle group including the cardio vascular system and minimizes joint impact, so the chances of developing arthritis, obesity, heart issues, or injury from muscle weakness is lowered. It also improves blood circulation, which helps keep the skin and coat healthy.
Hydrotherapy is best performed in a controlled environment at an optimal temperature to ensure the safety and health of your pet under the supervision of a trained professional.
Your pet works hard to move through the water, which in turn helps to increase muscle and cardiovascular fitness. Some exercise are too challenging on land, but by performing them in water the load and pressure is relieved from the joints, which in turn reduces pain and encourages a better range of movement. In time, this will help to improve gait and strengthen the muscles and core.
When a dog is swimming in the pool or walking against resistance on the underwater treadmill, the hydrostatic pressure of the water puts pressure on the chest making breathing more difficult which results in the heart and lungs working harder, which then leads to an improved respiratory and cardio vascular system.
While you could technically perform Hydrotherapy in a home swimming pool, hydrotherapists are uniquely trained to monitor certain aspects of the pet’s health during treatment, notice & correct any abnormal movement, and to perform certain exercises to stimulate the exact muscles that need it.
Pool Swimming
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Swim therapy is great for a variety of conditions including:
Pre and Post-Op Orthopedic Conditions, Neurological Conditions, Arthritis, Hip/Elbow Dysplasia, Soft Tissue Injuries, Degenerative Medical Conditions, Weight Management, Pain Management, Balance Training, Fitness, Advanced Age, Mental Health & Well Being.
Even if your specific condition is not listed, contact us to see if Hydrotherapy might be a good option for your pet.
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Cardiovascular Health
Muscle Mass & Strength
Stress Relief
Bone & Joint Health
Preventing Future Issues
Mental Health & Stimulation
For Advanced Age: Alleviation of Joint Pain and Increased Muscle
Underwater Treadmill
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Therapy sessions performed on the treadmill are ideal for a number of conditions, and allows for precise environmental factors to fine-tune the exercise. Treatments include:
Pre and post-operative orthopedic conditions, Neurological conditions, Arthritis, Hip/Elbow Dysplasia, Soft Tissue injuries, Degenerative and medical conditions.
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Some conditions that cannot be treated in a pool can be treated using the underwater treadmill. Since it’s harder to hyper-extend their limbs like in a pool, therapy on the aquatic treadmill can begin sooner than swim therapy.
Treadmill sessions are easier for dogs that are nervous around water since the hydrotherapist can gradually increase water level, and their paws are always on the ground.
Fun & Fitness
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Regular swimming helps to lower the chances of common medical issues and injuries such as Arthritis, Obesity, Heart Disease and other injuries from poor health.
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In addition to overall general health benefits, Swimming also improves blood circulation, which helps keep the skin and coat healthy.
Variety in a dog’s exercise routine is a great way to keep the stimulated and happy.
Hydrotherapy is also a great alternative to walking, especially when it’s super hot outside.
The temperatures in LA keep rising, becoming increasingly too hot to safely walk our pets during the day. Our fun and fitness swims are a great alternative to walking them in the blistering heat, and a better way to provide your dog with the exercise they need.
Even if you don’t swim with us, please keep this information in mind and avoid heading out for that walk during the hottest times of the day. Enjoy morning or evening walks instead, and remember that grassy and cooler surfaces are safest in warm temperatures.
