Hydrotherapy For Dogs in Sydney - Animal Rehab Klinik

Dog Hydrotherapy

Hydrotherapy for dogs is a popular choice for helping our pets fully rehabilitate from surgery, injuries as well as maintaining optimal health. There are many reasons why canine hydrotherapy is becoming such a well-renowned option for dogs:

Reduced impact on joints through an increase in buoyancy. This often results in pets being able to exercise harder with less pain.
Ultimate exercise intensity control for the practitioner. We can alter time, speeds, incline, water depth and even direction!
Builds strength in muscles that have become lazy due to pain or compensation.
Greater control of joint range of motion. We can use variances in water level & belt direction to increase or reduce a specific joint’s range of motion.
Unwind compensatory patterns. Long term injuries can result in bad movement habits (compensation). By taking pressure off joints and muscles and teaching the basics of walking again, compensation can be reduced and in some cases eliminated.

At the Animal Rehab Klinik, we use a state of the art canine underwater treadmill to do our hydrotherapy. Set at a comfortable 28 degrees, the water is perfect for any time of year. Besides walking, for small to medium dogs we can also swim dogs in the water.

Hydrotherapy can benefit most dogs suffering from joint pain, recovering from surgery, neurological conditions and general weakness.

Hydrotherapy May Be Beneficial For

Hydrotherapy FAQ’s

What Conditions Are Best Treated With Hydrotherapy?

The conditions we use the underwater treadmill for the most, and get great results with include:

Spinal surgery recovery
Cruciate ligament surgery
Hip & elbow dysplasia
Arthritis (although we find laser therapy can sometimes provide better results for some pets)
Neurological conditions
Maintaining fitness and strength

What Do I Need To Bring To /Do Before My Dogs Hydrotherapy Session?

Bring:

We recommend bringing a towel, so you can keep your dog dry on the way home. Don’t stress if you forget as we have plenty of towels on site.
If you have your own life jacket for your dog, we recommend bringing that as well.

Do:

Take your dog to the toilet – we can’t stress this enough. Nothing worse than your dog’s hydrotherapy session being cut short because we have to dump the water and clean the tank. This can also impact patients after you.
Give your dog a rest from their normal morning walk on this day, especially if they’re recovering from an injury. A regular walk and underwater treadmill on the same day can sometimes be too much for a recovering dog and they can pull up sore.

How Long Do Your Hydrotherapy Sessions Go For?

Like our other return treatments, allow half an hr which is enough to get in the underwater treadmill, fill & empty the water and dry them off. Typically your dog will be in the water for 15-20 minutes.

Is Hydrotherapy Safe For My Dog To Do After Surgery?

As long as the wound is healed, then it is fine. We do recommend checking with your vet first to make sure they are happy that the wound is fully healed.

Are There Situations Where My Dog Can't Use The Underwater Treadmill?

Yes.

Open wounds
Incontinence
Bitches in heat
If we a different treatment is better suited

What Temperature Is Your Underwater Treadmill?

Our underwater treadmill is usually set to 28 degrees celsius. On very cold days of winter, we’ll usually increase this temperature 1-2 degrees and on hot days of summer, we’ll cool it down a bit.

Is Chlorine Or Other Chemicals Used In The Water?

Yes, we mostly use bromine which is a similar chemical to chlorine, but a little less harsh with the smell. It is necessary for us to disinfect the water with chemicals for adequate disease prevention. In addition to this, we completely empty and refill our water tank with fresh water at the end of each week. When we do this we also shock the water with high amount of chlorine which is run through our system to further prevent bacteria and algae buildup. This takes place over the weekend when the underwater treadmill isn’t used, so come Monday the water is back to normal and able to be used again.