West Highlands Terriers for adoption

On a late Friday morning on the 19 July 2013, I had the pleasure to take photos of 2 adorable west highland terriers. They are currently residing in the Kechara Animal Sanctuary. These two were rescued from uscrupulous breeder who wants basically using them for breeding and selling the pups to the public who wants to buy a west highland terriers for RM2000 - RM4000 in pet shops or even selling themselves to the public but without ever letting the interested parties to view the mother. These two were so overbred that one of them now has a heart condition, dry eyes and she is hard of hearing. They have been living in a cage and they are only 4 years old. Those who have bought west highlands from pet shops, see the reality of the situation. These two were sent to be put down by the breeder because they have served their usage. So, it's a use and dispose situation.

Mehlnha who is suffering from a skin condition but now recovering with the help of Kechara Sanctuary

SO, continue to close your eyes, look away and buy cute puppies from the pet shops, then wonder, why does my puppy have skin problem? Why are they walking funny? Bad breeding causes this. Bad breeders do not care what happens to the female dog that breeds..which incidently starts when they are 6 months old or as soon as they are on heat. Money rules! That's all they see, not the live dogs in front of them. Over breeding causes the heart to weaken, such is the case of Jampa, one of the west highland females. She cannot run too fast for fear of straining her heart, she walks slowly like she's an old dog but she's only 4 years old.

Luckily, these two females were so happy when I photographed them. They do not hold grudges, they aren't depress. They are just glad that they are free, out and about and do not have to give birth to another litter of puppies. They have been saved. So please, do not buy a puppy you see in the pet shop because they are cute. Discourage breeders from breeding. Always adopt. There are so many out there that are being dumped everyday. Animals have feelings too.

Jampa who is suffering from dry eyes, heart condition and is hard of hearing. She will be on medication for the rest of her life. 

Functions of Muscle

As owners of canines, we take it for granted the health of our dogs. We expect them to be healthy, perfect and be our companions. We take them to the vet for their yearly vaccinations (which by the way, I do not vaccinate my dog every year for obvious reasons). We walk them, bathe or send them for grooming and shower them with love. So what happens when you're dog suddenly wakes up one morning and become lame? You send him / her to the vet, get pain killers, antibiotics if there's inflammation, cold compress...etc etc. Vet bills increases. 

We must understand and be aware that in every living creature, the contraction of the muscle is what causes movement. In a dog, it's the same. The primary function of the muscular system is the move different parts of  the body. It stabilizes the joints to keep them functioning. There are 2 types of muscles in the body : Voluntary and Involuntary muscles. Involuntary muscles are based around the cardiovascular region, the cardiac muscles and surrounding the arteries, bladder and intestines are smooth muscles.

The second voluntary muscle are the ones that aids in the movement of our canines. It is the skeletal muscles that is attach to the skeletal system. The muscles that is attached to the skeletal system are the ones that helps the canines to walk, run, wag tail, chew, stretch and stretch. It is these muscles that consist of many cells which is held together by connective tissue that causes muscle contraction and therefore movement. 

So if the muscle gets injured, pulled, stressed, sprained, the dog will experience lameness in his / her gait / movement. It may cause inflammation to the muscle. For degenerative disease like hip dysplasia, the muscle surrounding the joint plays an important role. As the humeral head in the femur bone isn't sitting properly in the socket, the muscles play a role to hold the humeral head together to socket or close to the socket. This is important because as your dog ages, if no treatment is done for the hip dysplasia, it will get progressively worse and your dog will eventually become lame, refuses to go for long walks because he / she is in pain. 

For the dogs that are healthy, maintaining your dog's optimum muscle health is important. Muscle therapy for your canines even once a month will lower your canines from injury and save you high vet bills. You will see less sprains, strains on your canines. For dogs with degenerative disease, this therapy is important to ease your canine's pains, increases the oxygen flow, prevents the hip from degenerating further or slows it down at the very least. He / she will be a much happier dog. 

I always believe that prevention is better than cure. If your dog has got a degenerative disease, than maintenance is important. It is not a cure for those dogs that have got hip dysplasia, but it will give your dog a better life free of pain.

This is my boxer, she is 10 years old and already finding it a little difficult to get up due to age. She gets her muscle therapy once a week. In this photo, she is resting from a vigorous play with our 11 month old Rottweiler. Look at how happy she is in this photo. 

So, call me on 016-3940968 for free consultation today. 

Canine Muscle Therapy

I am constantly being asked, how long is the session? What does it do? The statement I often hear is, "I can do it myself too!" Here's the short version of muscle therapy for dogs.

I can massage my dog too!

Yes I have no doubt that dog owners can massage their own dogs. In fact I'm sure lots of dog owners do. What I do is very different from just massaging the dogs. I work the muscles of the dog. I pinpoint which part of the muscle that needs to be 'unknotted' and sometimes the dog I work with will experience some discomfort but the result is, they normally end up relax and will fall asleep for a long time. I am a qualified therapist for dogs and have studied the musculoskeletal system of the dog. I am aware of the contraindication whereby I cannot and will not provide therapy for the dogs as it may injure them further.

How long does one session last?


For the first session, it may take up to an hour. The first hour I will sit with the owner and find out more about the dog and it's medical history. The diet that the dog is on, if there are any x-rays that I need to be aware of. Then I take a look at the dog's gait / movement. Which way he is swinging or favouring, whether he is lame..etc. Then I will sit and do a session on the dog. As it will be the dog's first session, it may not want to sit still and will fidget. The session may last only 20 minutes with the dog. As I do not believe in forcing the dog to sit still for the session, I will call it a day. The session will take time for the dog to adjust but he/she will feel the benefits from the first session. Eventually, the dog will be begging for a longer session!

Benefits of muscle therapy.


The benefits of muscle therapy for the dogs are many. For healthy dogs, it maintains their optimal level of health so as to ensure that their muscles are healthy and supple. This would in turn lessen any vet visitation. For dogs that do have health issues like hip dysplasia, muscle degeneration, sprain, strains, arthritis, this therapy will benefit them in helping them to loosen up their muscles. Dogs that have hip dysplasia will have better movement for their legs. Please note that this is not a cure for hip dysplasia. This treatment mainly helps the dog to ease the pain that they experience from hip dysplasia and gives them a better movement. Also note that if a dog suffers from hip dysplasia, they will be more reluctant to move or take their walks and their weight will slowly increase which in turn is bad for their hip, hence a vicious cycle. I have seen dogs that just got up after a treatment and started running around because she felt so good! For older dogs that suffers from arthritis, this is when the muscles and joints stiffen, this treatment will allow them to move around. Wouldn't it be great to see your dog being able to run again?
I currently have a dog that I have been treating for 3 years that was suffering from muscle spasms which is caused by muscle degeneration from her neck area. Since I started treatment with her, her spasms have stopped. Now her treatment has been reduced to once a month.

How often does the dog need treatment?


The frequency of treatment will depend on the vitality of the dog. For dogs that have health issues, I advise treatment once a week.  I will then observe the dog for a period of time and see how he / she is progressing. If he / she is improving, the treatment will then be reduced to once every two weeks and eventually once a month. The observation of the owners is also very important as I can keep up to date on it's progress.

What does this therapy do?

Muscle therapy helps in oiling the muscles, create fresh oxygen flow and releases the toxins in the body. When the muscles are in optimum health, there will be less injuries and the dog will have a long and happy life.

What are the charges and where am I based?


Currently I do house calls. The charges for 2012 are as follows:
One time consultation fee RM10
Small dogs     RM65
Medium dogs RM75
Large dogs     RM85
There are packages that I'm offering. Please email me for details on happydogz13@gmail.com
I will also be available on the 12 February 2012 for the lovers and leashes event organized by SPCA at Jaya One from 12-8.