East Midlands Clinical Canine Massage & Rehab

06/06/2026

🟢 What Makes My Gait Assessments Different?

My gait and postural assessments are designed to provide far more than a simple observation of how a dog moves.

Using a combination of detailed postural evaluation, slow-motion and frame-by-frame video analysis, functional movement assessment, rehabilitation-based movement screening, and biomechanical interpretation, I build a comprehensive picture of how your dog moves, functions, compensates, performs, and adapts to pain or dysfunction.

🟢 My assessments may include:

• Static postural assessment from multiple angles
• Slow-motion and frame-by-frame video gait analysis
• Walking, trotting, turning, transitions, and functional movement tasks
• Assessment of weight-bearing patterns and limb loading
• Evaluation of muscle development, symmetry, and compensatory movement patterns
• Functional movement screening utilised within rehabilitation settings
• Movement assessment using a FitFur Life treadmill analysis where appropriate, allowing controlled observation and detailed analysis of gait patterns

This approach allows subtle abnormalities to be identified that may otherwise go unnoticed during routine observation.

🟢 Advanced Clinical Analysis

Many musculoskeletal issues do not initially present as obvious lameness.

Instead, they often appear as subtle changes in posture, movement quality, performance, behaviour, or weight distribution.

Through detailed video analysis, treadmill assessment, postural evaluation, and evidence-based movement analysis techniques, I can identify:

• Reduced stride length
• Altered joint range of motion
• Limb offloading and asymmetrical weight-bearing
• Compensatory movement patterns
• Spinal and pelvic dysfunction
• Muscular imbalances and areas of overload
• Altered movement strategies that may indicate discomfort or dysfunction
• Biomechanical inefficiencies that may impact performance and long-term musculoskeletal health

🟢 Clinical Expertise & Interpretation

Technology is only as valuable as the clinician interpreting the findings.

My assessments are supported by:

✔ Advanced education in canine anatomy, biomechanics, rehabilitation, and pain physiology
✔ Specialist training in advanced gait analysis and movement assessment
✔ Advanced study of sporting dog biomechanics and performance analysis
✔ Clinical experience identifying compensation patterns and musculoskeletal dysfunction
✔ Ongoing professional development in rehabilitation science and canine movement analysis
✔ Integration of findings alongside veterinary history, clinical signs, and diagnostic investigations where appropriate

My particular area of interest is canine biomechanics and the analysis of movement in sporting and working dogs. This enables me to assess not only signs of pain and dysfunction, but also movement efficiency, performance limitations, compensation strategies, and potential injury risk factors.

This combination of advanced training, clinical reasoning, specialist biomechanical knowledge, and detailed movement analysis allows me to provide an exceptionally thorough assessment of your dog’s posture, gait, movement quality, and functional performance.

🟢 Why This Matters

Sometimes the difference between “everything looks normal” and identifying the underlying problem lies in the details.

If you have concerns about your dog’s movement, posture, performance, comfort, or behaviour, a detailed gait assessment may provide valuable information that supports both rehabilitation planning and veterinary investigation.

📍 East Midlands Clinical Canine Massage & Rehabilitation Therapies

For more information about my gait and postural assessment services, visit:

https://www.emccm.co.uk

27/05/2026

🧘‍♀️ Grounding in Clinical Canine Massage & Myofascial Release Therapy

Are there other therapists that practice this? I’d like to know your thoughts and how you may go about this……

Within clinical canine massage and myofascial release therapy, grounding is an important component of both practitioner preparation and therapeutic delivery. Prior to each treatment session, I take time to regulate my own breathing, posture, and focus in order to create a calm, controlled, and clinically supportive environment for the dog.

Grounding refers to the practitioner maintaining physical, emotional, and cognitive presence throughout treatment. This approach supports greater palpation accuracy, improved tactile sensitivity, and enhanced observation of subtle neuromuscular responses during manual therapy interventions.

In canine rehabilitation and musculoskeletal therapy, the therapeutic environment plays a significant role in patient response. Dogs experiencing chronic pain, anxiety, behavioural sensitivity, or previous trauma frequently demonstrate heightened sympathetic nervous system activity, which can contribute to muscular guarding, increased tissue tension, and reduced tolerance to touch.

A calm and regulated practitioner may help facilitate parasympathetic nervous system engagement through co-regulation, slow intentional touch, and reduced environmental stress. This is particularly relevant during myofascial release therapy, where sustained low-load techniques rely on tissue relaxation, nervous system downregulation, and patient trust to optimise therapeutic outcomes.

Grounding techniques such as diaphragmatic breathing, controlled body mechanics, sensory awareness, and mindful therapeutic intent may therefore support:
• Reduced patient reactivity and muscular guarding
• Improved tissue receptivity during myofascial techniques
• Enhanced relaxation and treatment tolerance
• More accurate assessment of soft tissue restrictions and compensatory patterns
• A safer and more effective clinical treatment environment

In practice, grounding is not simply a wellness concept; it forms part of a clinically reasoned approach to manual therapy, supporting both patient welfare and treatment efficacy.







References:
• Becker, L. E., Brumfield, J. H., & McCobb, E. (2020). Physiological and behavioral effects of massage therapy on canine patients: A review of current evidence. Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 37, 28–35.
• Lloyd, J. K. F., & Roe, S. C. (2021). The role of the human–animal bond in veterinary therapeutic outcomes. Veterinary Record, 189(5), e52.
• Schleip, R., & Müller, D. G. (2013). Training principles for fascial connective tissues: Scientific foundation and suggested practical applications. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 17(1), 103–115.
• Stecco, C. (2015). Functional Atlas of the Human Fascial System. Elsevie

24/05/2026

A difficult post to write… but something I think about often as both a practitioner and a dog owner ❤️🐾

One thing I have always said, and always will say, is that no dog should live in pain. It is one of the core values behind my clinical practice and something I feel deeply passionate about.

For me, pain management is not optional. If I feel a dog is suffering and their needs are not being supported appropriately, ethically I struggle to continue treatment, because quality of life must always come first.

But here’s the difficult part…
At what point are we helping them live, and at what point are we simply helping them stay alive?

As veterinary medicine advances, we are able to offer more pain relief, more medications, more interventions, and sometimes more time. And in many cases, that time is precious and worthwhile. Good pain management matters. Comfort matters. Dignity matters.

But I think many of us who love dogs deeply have also faced, or will face, the heartbreaking question of when enough is enough.

Are we always keeping them here for them… or sometimes for us?

It’s a thought that weighs heavily on me, both professionally and personally. Because unlike humans, our dogs cannot tell us when they are tired. They cannot tell us when they are simply existing rather than truly living.

And yet, because we love them so much, we fight for them. We advocate for them. We medicate them. We search for another treatment, another option, another few months.

Sometimes that is absolutely the right thing to do.
Sometimes giving them comfort and support gives them more happy days, more dignity, and more quality time.

But sometimes I wonder whether, as humans, we struggle to let go because we are not ready — even when they might be.

I don’t have the answer to this, and I honestly don’t think there is one single right answer. Every dog, every family, and every situation is different.

As both a practitioner and an owner, I find this one of the hardest parts of loving a dog so deeply. Wanting to do everything possible for them, whilst also questioning whether they are truly comfortable, truly happy, and truly still enjoying life.

I would genuinely be interested in hearing your thoughts and experiences on this difficult subject. Please keep comments kind, respectful, and empathetic — because ultimately, I believe most owners are simply trying to do the very best for the dogs they love ❤️

And if anybody is currently going through any of the above, please know you are not alone. I’m always here if anyone needs support, guidance, or simply someone to talk things through with ❤️🐾

23/05/2026

🟢 Pain, fascia, behaviour, and the nervous system…

This is something I’ve found myself thinking about more and more in practice recently.

I often say that I’m not a behaviourist or dog trainer, although I’ve completed a number of behaviour-related courses over the years. Behaviour is such a complex area, and I have huge respect for the people who work within it professionally.

One of the things I really value in this profession is being able to learn from others — particularly veterinary behaviourists, trainers, vets, and rehabilitation professionals. Conversations with some incredibly knowledgeable people have made me increasingly interested in how pain, fascia, the nervous system, and behaviour may all influence one another in dogs.

For years I’ve heard phrases like “the body stores trauma” or “fascia holds emotional memory.” I’ve always been curious about how that might actually work physiologically, so I’ve spent quite a bit of time reading around the topic.

Recently I came across an interesting paper by Kotler, Mannino, Fox & Friston (2026):

📖 The body does not keep the score: trauma, predictive coding, and the restoration of metastability.

What I found particularly interesting was the idea that trauma may not literally be stored in tissue itself, but that the brain and nervous system can become locked into protective prediction patterns.

In very simple terms:
🐾 the brain begins expecting threat
🐾 the nervous system stays on alert
🐾 the body continues responding protectively, even when danger may no longer be present

Behaviourists
⬇️⬇️⬇️
When we think about anxious, reactive, hypervigilant, or chronically painful dogs, this starts to feel highly relevant.

Dogs living with pain, repeated discomfort, injury, chronic stress, or negative experiences may show:

• increased tension and muscle guarding
• altered posture and movement patterns
• exaggerated responses
• difficulty relaxing or settling
• avoidance behaviours
• persistent protective patterns long after healing has occurred

To me, this doesn’t lessen the importance of fascia or the body’s role in pain and behaviour, if anything, it reinforces how interconnected the nervous system and body really are.

Therapists
⬇️⬇️⬇️
In rehabilitation work, we regularly see how pain can influence behaviour, and equally how stress and behavioural state can influence pain, movement quality, posture, muscle tone, and recovery.

🟢can you help?

It’s an area I’d genuinely love to understand more deeply.

I’d be really interested to hear thoughts from:
🐾 veterinary behaviourists
🐾 accredited trainers
🐾 clinical animal behaviourists
🐾 rehabilitation professionals
🐾 vets involved in pain management

Especially around chronic pain, nervous system dysregulation, fascia, and behavioural presentation in dogs.

There’s still so much for all of us to learn together in order to better support dogs living with pain.

22/05/2026

📌 Client Notice

Invoices have been sent out a week earlier than usual this month, as I will be away for a few days and attending a professional course.

Could clients please let me know if they don’t receive them.

I’m currently working through a large amount of admin following a very busy month, so thank you for your patience while I get everything caught up.

Thank you for your continued support 🐾

22/05/2026

📚 Today is a learning day ☕🐾

I’m passionate about continuing my education and deepening my special interest in canine clinical nutrition, the microbiome, and the many factors involved in supporting health and rehabilitation.

I’m delighted to have successfully completed my Canine Nutrition for Sport Dogs course, and I’m now moving straight onto my next veterinary-led nutrition course. Continuous professional development is incredibly important to me, ensuring I can provide the most up-to-date, evidence-based support for the dogs I work with.

I’m pleased to say I’ve started my new course exploring the gut microbiome, and today’s study focus is:
🦠 The Microbiome

Learning more about:
✔️ Prebiotics
✔️ Probiotics
✔️ Postbiotics
✔️ And my personal favourite… bacteriophages 🧬

Two cups of coffee later and it’s time to study ☕☕📖

The more we learn about the gut microbiome, the more we understand its incredible influence on immunity, inflammation, behaviour, digestion, musculoskeletal health, and overall wellbeing in dogs.

Lifelong learning never stops

20/05/2026

Canine Treatments for the Nervous or Anxious Dog

One of the most rewarding parts of my work is helping nervous or anxious dogs learn to feel safe, relaxed, and comfortable during treatment. The moment a dog begins to trust you and accepts gentle hands-on therapy is incredibly special. 💚

For many reactive or sensitive dogs, a clinical assessment can feel overwhelming, unfamiliar environments, new people, and hands-on examinations can all create stress. That is why my approach is always centred around the individual dog, allowing them time, space, comfort breaks, and the freedom to express natural behaviours throughout the session.

Creating a calm, low-stress, dog-friendly environment is a huge part of how I work. Every assessment is adapted to the dog in front of me to ensure they feel as safe and relaxed as possible.

Meet Harry 🐾
Harry is a working Cocker Spaniel who initially found parts of his assessment a little overwhelming. Rather than pushing through, we allowed him regular comfort breaks and incorporated activities he enjoys, including scent work and hunting games.

By working with Harry at his pace, we saw a much calmer and more relaxed dog emerge throughout the session. This allowed us to complete a far more valuable musculoskeletal assessment, and by the end of treatment he had settled beautifully and was able to relax into therapy.

We are very much looking forward to supporting Harry on his journey through:
• Clinical Canine Massage
• Osteopathic Techniques
• Conditioning & Core Strengthening Work
• Nutritional Support
• Gut Microbiome Support

Every dog deserves to be heard, understood, and treated with patience and compassion. 🐶💚

16/05/2026

Kiaia came to see us today, and she is doing incredibly well

Kia was diagnosed with right hip dysplasia following veterinary assessment and radiographic imaging. Her vet recommended clinical canine massage and rehabilitation therapy to help support her comfort, mobility, and muscular function.

Her radiographs demonstrated early changes associated with right hip dysplasia, including a narrower acetabulum (hip socket), which can reduce the stability of the hip joint. Hip dysplasia is a developmental orthopaedic condition where the hip joint does not fit together as smoothly as it should, often leading to abnormal joint wear, muscular compensation, inflammation, and discomfort over time.

Interestingly, despite the radiographs showing more significant changes on the right side, Kiaia presented with greater discomfort through the left hindlimb during today’s assessment. She showed marked sensitivity on palpation and discomfort during passive range of motion (PROM) testing of the left hip.

This highlights an important principle in musculoskeletal therapy:

➡️ We always treat the dog in front of us — not just the information from the radiographs. Thorough assessment is key to developing an individualised and tailored treatment plan for every dog.

Dogs are exceptionally adaptive and will often compensate away from a painful or unstable limb, leading to overload and secondary muscular tension elsewhere in the body. Compensatory patterns commonly develop within the opposite limb, lumbar spine, and surrounding soft tissues as the body attempts to redistribute weight and maintain movement efficiency.

Today’s treatment focused on:
✔️ Clinical canine massage therapy
✔️ Myofascial release techniques
✔️ Gentle range of motion work
✔️ Soft tissue mobilisation
✔️ Photobiomodulation (laser therapy) to support tissue healing, reduce inflammation, and assist with pain modulation
✔️ Rehabilitation advice to support strength, comfort, and mobility at home

Laser therapy has been shown to assist with pain reduction and tissue healing through its effects on cellular metabolism and inflammation modulation, making it a valuable adjunctive therapy in musculoskeletal rehabilitation.

Kiaia did amazingly well throughout her session, and we look forward to supporting her continued progress 🐶💚

References:
Millis, D. & Levine, D. (2014). Canine Rehabilitation and Physical Therapy.
Johnston, S.A. (1997). Osteoarthritis: Joint anatomy, physiology, and pathobiology. Veterinary Clinics of North America.
Fox, S.M. (2016). Multimodal Management of Canine Osteoarthritis.

15/05/2026

Chronic pain in dogs is not always just a muscle problem.

For many years, treatment approaches focused primarily on muscle tightness, weakness, compensation patterns, or joint restriction. While these factors are important, current pain science suggests there may be another significant contributor involved: fascia.

Fascia is a highly innervated connective tissue network that surrounds and supports muscles, nerves, joints, and organs. Research has shown that fascia contains sensory receptors and plays an important role in communication with the nervous system (Schleip et al., 2012).

When fascial tissue becomes restricted, less mobile, dehydrated, or inflamed, it may contribute to altered movement patterns, mechanical tension, and persistent pain signalling. In chronic pain conditions, these changes can influence both mobility and comfort.

This is why fascia-focused manual therapy and movement-based rehabilitation can be valuable within a multimodal approach to canine pain management.

Improving fascial glide and tissue mobility may help support:
• Reduced protective tension
• Improved movement quality
• Better proprioception and body awareness
• Increased comfort and functional mobility

Pain is complex, and effective rehabilitation often requires looking beyond muscles alone.

References:
• Schleip R, Findley TW, Chaitow L, Huijing PA. Fascia: The Tensional Network of the Human Body. 2012.
• Stecco C et al. The Fascia: The Forgotten Structure. Italian Journal of Anatomy and Embryology. 2011.
• Wilke J et al. Fascia Research — From Molecular Biology to Clinical Applications. Frontiers in Physiology. 2019.

14/05/2026

Love this 🙏Onlinepethealth

As our patients age, the goal of rehabilitation shifts.

It’s no longer just about performance or returning to full function -
it becomes about comfort, dignity, and quality of life.

Geriatric dogs and cats often present with a combination of challenges:
chronic pain, reduced mobility, muscle loss, cognitive changes, and decreased tolerance to activity. These changes don’t happen in isolation - they layer over time, impacting how the animal moves, behaves, and interacts with their environment.

What matters most is recognising that aging is not a disease…
but the conditions that come with it are manageable.

Small, targeted interventions can make a significant difference:
✔️ Supporting joint mobility and muscle function
✔️ Managing pain effectively
✔️ Adapting the home environment to reduce strain and risk
✔️ Maintaining gentle, appropriate movement

Rehabilitation in geriatric patients is about meeting them where they are.

Progress may be slower.
Goals may be smaller.
But the impact is often profound.

Because when we shift our focus from adding years to life…
to adding life to years,
we change not only how our patients feel - but how they live.

Link in the comments