Underwater Treadmill for Back Surgery Rehabilitation
By Howard Young Apr 19, 2011
)Dog on treadmill (Photo: Flickr/University of Missouri System)
The other day, I was taken back to my distant memory when a reader posted several concerns about Scottie her Dachshund with back problems and how long he was taking to recover from back surgery. I failed to respond that when Odie started on his six month rehabilitation program, one of the options the pet hospital offered was retraining on an underwater treadmill.
During that first month of wobbly legs and wondering if he would ever recover, I determined that the next step in his program was the aquatic treadmill filled with warm buoyant water to get those little legs moving and strengthened again.
But Odie recovered slowly at first then with exponential speed in recovery. With his rapid recovery he never had the opportunity or need to this type of rehabilitation. It’s hard to say if it Odie would have had full recovery if he went on this program rather than partial paralysis in his right rear.
How Dog Treadmills Work for Rehab
According to Ferno Veterinary Systems, they have seen reduced recovery time of 50-60% in canines rehabilitating from injury and surgery. Since the water provides buoyancy and near zero-g pressure on the paralyzed limbs, the treadmill and water pushing them back and forth help the pet with spinal cord injuries regain the ability to walk again.
The water provides a warm safe environment to strengthen the dog’s muscles that have atrophied due to the loss of use of the limbs. During Odie’s rehab, it was very difficult to provide him adequate support while he was taking baby steps in the relearning and healing process. I had to be extremely careful not to hurt him post surgery using the belly sling or my hands for support.
With underwater treadmills, the warm water provides the support and gives enough resistance for the muscles to grow as the dog recovers from his injury.