Rehabilitation & Pain Relief for Dogs & Cats in Oro Valley, AZ

We are able to offer elevated care for our patients with the support of our underwater treadmill, which allows pets to exercise safely to improve their range of motion, mobility, and overall quality of life. Water provides some resistance for your pet, which helps in building muscle mass and strength. At the same time, the buoyancy the water provides reduces strain and weight bearing on the joints. This makes hydrotherapy reasonably comfortable and gentle for your pet, and customizable, as we can adjust the water level to suit their needs.

Hydrotherapy is recommended for pets with arthritis, pets trying to lose weight, canine athletes looking to build endurance, and pets recovering from orthopedic surgery.

The Bailey Veterinary Medical Center uses the Class 4 Cutting Edge EVO MLS Vet laser, which is specifically designed for treating dogs and cats. This tool allows us to treat a tremendous range of conditions and provide better results to our patients. Laser therapy is an integrative treatment which we can incorporate into just about any care plan, especially when pain relief is a primary goal.

One of the advantages of our laser is that it is capable of penetrating deeper into the muscle tissue, stimulating the cells to generate an increase in ATP, DNA, and oxygen production for better cell metabolism.

Some examples of conditions we can treat with our laser:

• Surgical incisions (post-op)
• Dental incisions/extraction sites
• Stimulation of acupuncture points
• Replacement for acupuncture if patients cannot tolerate needles
• Arthritis
• Back pain
• Sore muscles
• Ligament tears
• Ear and skin infections
• Lacerations, bruises, abrasions, and burns
• Lick granulomas

Beneficial Effects of Laser Therapy:

• Accelerates wound healing
• Decreases pain
• Increases the release of endorphins
• Improves blood flow and blood vessel formation
• Decreases swelling and tissue edema
• Reduces the growth of bacteria

Laser therapy treatment sessions can be as short as just 5 minutes and are completely non-invasive and pain-free. The subtle warmth generated by the laser can make for a relaxing and comfortable experience for our patients, who often come to enjoy their treatment.

Dr. Elizabeth Jobe is certified in veterinary acupuncture, and thus has years of experience and knowledge in this area of medicine. Veterinary acupuncture is a science-based integrative therapy that uses the placement of small, slim needles at nerve and blood vessel junctures to generate a healing response in our patients. When acupuncture needles are carefully placed at these specific points, they stimulate the release of various hormones, including endorphins, to decrease pain and increase healing. They can also improve blood circulation throughout the body.

We are happy to offer this service to any patient, not just our rehab patients! Acupuncture is safe and non-invasive and can be applied to treat many different conditions as well:

• Arthritis
• Hip/elbow dysplasia
• Knee injuries
• Tendonitis
• Neurologic disorders (neck/back pain, weakness of the limbs)
• Muscle spasms/pain
• Incontinence
• For post-operative pain relief/recovery
• Inflammation
• Swelling of the limbs
• Nausea
• Constipation/diarrhea
• Anxiety/stress
• Seizures
• Cancer

Acupuncture is generally a painless procedure and tolerated quite well for most of our patients. We will evaluate your pet first and discuss all possible treatment options to find out if acupuncture is right for them.

We can perform various pet physical therapy exercises with your companion to help improve the function of their joints, heart, lungs, and/or nervous system. Our exercises are designed to increase your pet’s range of motion and mobility and build up their muscle mass and strength as much as possible safely and comfortably. Our goal is to enhance their quality of life and reduce their risk of injury in the future.

Dr. Jobe is certified in canine rehabilitation and has the experience and knowledge to decide which therapeutic exercises will yield the most benefits to your pet. Age, size, breed, condition, and endurance level are just some of the factors we need to consider in planning your pet’s treatment.

Guided exercises are beneficial because they:

• Are non-invasive
• Can accelerate and improve injury recovery
• Improve the mobility and quality of movement of the limbs
• Can have a positive psychological impact on your pet (and you!)
• Can improve endurance and performance both in pets recovering from injury, and pets involved in sporting and agility

To make our therapeutic exercises more enjoyable for your pet, we can offer a variety of different exercises at varying difficulty and intensity depending on their condition. These include:

• Land treadmill with sling assistance
• Physioballs
• Nerve-stimulating balancing exercises
• Weighted vests
• Wheelbarrowing exercises
• Stair climbing with resistance bands

Our exercises vary widely in order to address different conditions and target different muscle groups. Every pet gets a customized exercise plan that is tailored to their unique and evolving needs.

Massage involves various techniques of kneading the soft tissues of the body to relieve tension, reduce pain, encourage relaxation, decrease swelling, and much more. Our massages are therapeutic, systematic, and functional, ranging from light, gentle strokes to deep tissue massage. We often use massage therapy throughout a patient’s rehabilitation treatment, but also prior to treatment to loosen up trigger points.

Additional benefits of massage therapy include:

• Relaxing the superficial tissues to allow for assessment of deeper tissues
• Facilitating blood flow to send oxygen and nutrients to certain tissues
• Reducing post-exercise muscle soreness
• Decreasing inflammation
• Increasing cell metabolism in the muscles

When a dog gets injured, their muscles and soft tissues will attempt to compensate and end up functioning differently, resulting in knots and muscle soreness. Massage plays an important role in reducing these problems and helping to restore normal, healthy function. Along with performing massage here at our hospital, we can also train you, the pet owner, in performing these massages at home to keep your pet comfortable. It’s also a great way to bond with your companion.

COMING SOON!

Therapeutic ultrasound uses vibrations produced from sound waves to generate deep heat within the joints and muscle tissues. This technique penetrates deeper than superficial heating systems and is therefore more effective for healing and pain relief in our patients.

Prior to delivering this treatment, the affected area needs to be clipped to shorten the hair as direct contact with the skin is ideal for this therapy. As with other integrative therapies, therapeutic ultrasound works well in conjunction with other treatments like acupuncture, laser therapy, and massage.

Common indications for therapeutic ultrasound include:

• Pain relief
• Muscle spasm relief
• Reducing swelling/edema
• Healing wounds and fractures
• Improving blood flow and tissue metabolic rate
• Improving range of motion/decreasing joint stiffness
• Fibrotic myopathy/joint contracture
• Calcific tendonitis