Frequently Asked Questions
What should I expect?
At the beginning of each appointment, movement patterns, joint mobility, and local areas of tenderness are assessed to determine if and where a joint’s motion is limited. Any joint restrictions are then addressed using a chiropractic adjustment, which provides a high velocity, low amplitude force through a joint to restore proper motion. Because of the high number of sensory receptors in joints, adjustments often cause a large amount of information to be sent back to the brain. We often see an animal process this information through licking, chewing, slow blinks (horses) or full body shakes (dogs). Depending on your animal’s initial presentation and treatment, they may immediately feel better after treatment and have an increase in energy, or they may feel tired and prefer to rest the remainder of the day. Both of these responses can be normal due to the effect that adjustments have on regulation of the autonomic nervous system. If you are ever concerned about your animal’s behavior after an adjustment, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Kaitlyn or your DVM.
Why should I schedule an appointment?
Lack of appropriate motion often causes compensatory patterns throughout the rest of the body, which tend to become worse over time. These patterns increase injury risk, especially in high work load athletes. Because of the way bodies incorporate these compensatory patterns, we expect that chronic issues will take multiple treatments to fully correct. Maintaining appropriate joint motion and movement patterns can decrease risks of repetitive injuries and increase performance or scores for our animal competitors, help working animals feel better, and keep older animals moving and comfortable throughout their lives.
What are common symptoms that present for chiropractic care?
Horses often present with gait abnormalities, soreness in the back or neck, stiffness, changes in performance, and difficulty with leads. It is important that your horse is up to date with dental exams and your veterinarian has ruled out more serious injury (such as a fracture) or sickness.
Dogs often present with difficulty jumping, trouble lying down/getting up, arthritis, or changes in performance of working or competition dogs. If your dog has had a traumatic injury, it is important that they be evaluated and imaged by a licensed veterinarian before being scheduled for an adjustment.
Show animals (cattle, swine, etc.) often present with gait abnormalities that are affecting their scoring.