Veterinary Physiotherapy FAQ

Veterinary Physiotherapy encompasses a range of modalities focused on addressing musculoskeletal conditions. These techniques can help speed up recovery following injury or surgery, or offer an improved quality of life for animals suffering from long-term issues.

For performance animals that are not actively suffering from any conditions, veterinary physiotherapy can assist in the maintenance of soundness, helping to keep the animal injury-free.

This approach is a complementary therapy that fits within the wider vet-led animal support team, including veterinary surgeons, farriers and dentists.

We accept small animals, such as dogs, at our physical clinic in Cork. For larger animals, we provide a call-out service.

We will treat any animal that could potentially benefit from these services, and is not in need of immediate veterinary attention. The range of services that are suitable for a particular animal, however, may be influenced by the species or any contraindications arising from the animal’s medical history or ongoing treatment.

In the case of nervous or fearful animals, please let us know when booking so we can schedule a quieter time slot.

For post-operative or post-injury animals, I will need to liaise with your animal’s veterinary team to ensure that treatments are suitable and there are no contraindications.

For ongoing maintenance of long-term conditions or performance animals, a vet referral is not required, but is always welcome.

Most animals can benefit in some way from the various modalities that make up veterinary physiotherapy, but common signs that your animal would respond strongly include:

• your animal appears stiff,
• your animal has difficulty getting up from a resting position,
• your animal has a tendency to drag limbs,
• your animal is showing signs of lameness,
• your animal doesn’t seem as active or inclined to move about,
• your dog doesn’t wag its tail as much as it used to, especially in a younger dog – this can indicate lumbar issues or the beginnings of osteoarthritis.

You know your own animal best, and often symptoms are not obvious to an external observer. You may have simply noticed subtle changes in your animal’s behaviour, or it may appear to be “slowing down” in a way you can’t put your finger on – in these cases, an assessment can help to shed some light on possible causes.

If the animal is involved in sport activities, such as performance horses or dogs, veterinary physiotherapy can help maintain and potentially improve range of motion and proprioception, and reduce susceptibility to injury.

If a condition occurs suddenly, or you suspect that your animal is injured or sick, your only correct course of action is to go to your vet. Veterinary physiotherapy cannot address acute conditions.

An initial consultation gives me the opportunity to thoroughly examine and assess the animal. I will take into account your animal’s medical history and any known conditions or injuries, but the initial consultation is primarily an opportunity to determine the animal’s current symptoms and physical state and investigate potential causes. For this reason, the initial consultation is more about assessment than treatment.

During this time, I will typically perform a physical examination of the animal, manipulate limbs to assess range of motion, take measurements, analyse the animal’s gait and movement, perform thermography of potential inflammation sites and make extensive notes and measurements for reporting and tracking recovery. Then, we will have a chat to discuss findings and potential courses of treatment. For this reason, it is important that you are present at the initial consultation, and that the animal is ready to be examined at the beginning of the consultation.

This will greatly depend upon the condition, choice of treatment and animal’s response to the therapy. During the initial consultation, we can discuss options for follow-up treatment, and treatment plans can be customized according to the owner’s goals and situation.

After a set number of treatment sessions, the treatment plan will typically be reviewed to assess improvement and whether further treatment is necessary.

When you get in touch, you will be asked to provide details about your animal, the condition(s) of concern and your animal’s medical history and any ongoing treatments. Details of your animal’s vet should also be provided, where possible.

For our call-out service, you will also be asked where the animal is located – ideally, provide an Eircode so that it is easier to find!

Your animal does not need to be bathed or thoroughly groomed prior to consultation, but should be “comfortable” – discomfort from substantial mud, dirt or matted fur can influence an animal’s movement and make assessment more difficult.

In the case of a horse, a quick brush to remove any dried mud is sufficient, and be ready to be assessed (already caught and in or near a flat area where it can be trotted up).

For canine and other small animal patients, a coat relatively free from mats is desirable – if necessary, I can dematt the animal.

When a condition has been accurately determined, the correct treatment for the issue is chosen with reference to potential contraindications, and the treatment is applied correctly and with care, veterinary physiotherapy is completely safe.

It is important to remember that any treatment that can create a substantial, visible improvement in an animal’s physical condition, can also have a negative effect if applied incorrectly. This is why it is vital that assessment of the animal’s condition and subsequent treatment is carried out carefully and, where appropriate, as part of the animal’s wider vet-led care regime.

The purpose of veterinary physiotherapy is not to apply one or more modalities as a catch-all treatment irrespective of the animal’s situation – every animal is different, and will respond differently to different treatments. The greatest concern is always the health and wellbeing of your animal. In the course of the initial consultation, I will determine which are the most suitable treatments for your animal, and revise the treatment plan if necessary on an ongoing basis. If you have any concerns regarding particular treatments, feel free to bring them up during the initial consultation and we can take these concerns into account when building the treatment programme.

Our call-out service is primarily aimed at larger animals that cannot physically be brought to the clinic. In some cases, we can also provide a call-out service for smaller animals, particularly in cases where the animal is unable to travel. However, in such cases the range of services that we can offer is limited, as much of the equipment is too large to move from the clinic and the work area is typically not ideal. For this reason, we encourage owners of small animals to visit the clinic; but if you are unable to, please get in touch and we can have a chat.

Many animals with partial paralysis benefit from the greater mobility afforded to them by having a wheelchair fitted. For animals that have a progressive mobility-limiting condition, it might not yet be time to put them in a wheelchair, so this needs to be assessed on a case-by-case basis. There are also cases where an animal might benefit from temporarily having a wheelchair while it undergoes rehabilitation.

As every individual has different needs, our recommendation is that you give us a call to discuss your animal’s particular situation, so that we can figure the best way to move forward.

Our physical clinic is at Unit 604, Harbour Point Business Park, Little Island, Cork T45 A660.

Directions: Upon entering Little Island from Junction 2 on the N25, at the roundabout take the turn-off signposted for “Little Island”, and turn left at the petrol station. Continue along the road past St. Joseph’s Cemetery & Church, until you see a sign on your right for EZ Living. Turn right at this sign, continue until you meet the next sign for EZ Living, and turn right again. We are Unit 604 on the right, facing the water.