 Why
All Animals Need MASSAGE
Massage is a time-honored method of
reducing stress and tension that brings a feeling of calmness to your
animals. Massage can be used to comfort tired muscles and relieve
pain. Massage increases circulation to an area and can be used to
strengthen areas of the body by stimulating muscles and restoring
flexibility.
When circulation is improved, the blood
flows through the muscles, which helps alleviate pain.
While bones provide the structure of the
animal the muscles hold the bones in place. Without muscles, tendons
and ligaments, the bones would have no cushioning and no energy to do
any work. The muscles are the slings, and ropes of the body. When the
muscle tissue is injured or damaged, inflammation and pain invade the
area. The body reacts releasing histamines and lactic acid into the
muscles causing abnormal contractions, tension and spasms. The injured
muscles tighten and pull on the joints. The results an animal holding
his limb, neck or back in a compensating position, or distributing his
weight unevenly, which creates new stress on the bones and joints. The
animal may begin to limp or may not be able to put weight on the leg.
All of these things are a result of muscle injury. Massage works with
the muscles to help them relax and to restore their original elasticity
and position, which helps to eliminate the animals pain.
Massage is most helpful in restoring
proper movement to injured limbs muscles and joints. When injured
muscle tissue is held in a fixed position it develops a new memory or
what is often referred to as a holding pattern.
Animals can develop holding patterns as a
result of any trauma, which injures a bone or the alignment of the
spine, such as being hit by a car, or even surgery. These holding
patterns can also result from emotional traumas, when the animal tries
to protect itself out of fear, or the weekend syndrome where you do an
activity on the weekend with your animals and they have been sedentary
all the rest of the week.
The resulting joint dysphasia can
decrease flexibility because the muscles and bones are no longer
synchronized.
Massage can be used to create balance.
Balance often gets out of alignment where the vertebrae change their
directions. Examples of this are where the neck vertebrae end, just in
front of the shoulders, and where the thoracic vertebrae begin. The
lumbar vertebrae of the lower back are another area of concern; this is
where the thoracic vertebrae end and the lumbar vertebrae begin, at the
end of the ribs. The sacrum, (lower back) and tail vertebrae also can
present problems. It is at these transitional regions that structural
changes cause changes in the angles of the body. We refer to these as
stress points and they require reinforcement as they are subject to
greater tension and stress.
Massage can help these transitional areas
to maintain alignment, tone and mobility.
Massage has been used to:
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Create balance |
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Increase blood and lymph
circulation |
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Bring strength to weakened
muscles |
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Disperse pain in tensed muscles |
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Aid in behavioral problems |
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Reduce stress and tension |
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Restore proper mobility and
flexibility |
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