Transcription
The deep water pool is a useful tool for dogs that can't walk. The biggest group of those that we work with are dogs with spinal or brain injuries. They can move in water well before they can move on land. Getting them to move in the water stimulates the brain, stimulates the healing process.
We swim dogs in the pool after spinal injuries like a slipped disc. There's also a condition called a fibrocartilaginous embolus or FCE, we work with fairly frequently. There are various other neurologic problems that benefit from swimming. A more common one is vestibular disease or old rolling dog syndrome, where dogs develop a disturbance in the inner ear and have trouble with balance. The gentle pressure of the water can really help them get a feeling for movement again and get them going.
The second thing that we work with in the pool is dogs with orthopedic injuries, primarily more of the front legs. The dogs will swim well with the front legs. Any dog where we really want to protect the limb, where we don't want a lot of load through the joint but we want to work the muscles.
When we have a dog that has difficulty with swimming or fear of water, we have a slow process of introduction. We place a life jacket on them, bring them into the water on a platform so they're standing in the water, and do gentle excursions away from the platform and back. So they get used to the idea with a lot of support, with a technician in the water supporting them and teaching them that it's a safe thing. We work on safety and comfort first before we start pushing the dogs to work too hard.