A Brief Introduction to Jo Sutton-Walker dip.MCAM (OCEPT)

Jo Sutton-Walker dip.MCAM (OCEPT) is based in North Yorkshire and has been helping the dogs and horses of the area since 2003. She works as a freelance physical therapist specialising in the treatment of horses, working dogs and pets using Mctimoney-Corley Spinal Therapy. She is also a freelance writer with articles on the subject published in several magazines. For more information about Jo please click here.

Spinal Therapy for Animals

Animal manipulation was first introduced by John McTimoney DC in the early nineteen seventies (see below for more information), the technique was refined by Hugh Corley DC (OSC) later in that decade. In the mid-nineteen eighties, animal treatment was further developed and expanded by Shelagh James-Hudson DC (WSC).

DOGS

Some symptoms and causes of back and joint pain

Symptoms

• Looking tucked up / roached with tail tightly clamped down
• Holding the tail to one side
• Continually resting one hind leg or shifting weight from one side to the other
• Snatching up a hind leg then gingerly lowering it again
• Generally showing difficulty and stiffness turning one or both ways
• Having difficulty in getting up after lying down
• Unequal hind stride length or shortened strides
• Unequal front limb stride or showing a rolling or dipping action
• Intermittent or unexplained lameness with no obvious signs of injury
• Displaying signs of sourness and depression or aggression
• Failing to stay the distance in a race / lack of stamina in working dog
• Generally a reduced level of performance
• Unwilling or unable to jump fences or jump into or out of a vehicle
• Permanent or temporary holding of the body curved to one side
• Unwilling to sit preferring to stand or lie down

Causes

• Over-exertion
• Jumping and getting hung up on a fence
• Jumping down from a height, especially onto a hard surface
• Jumping from a moving vehicle
• Repetitive strain
• Constantly pulling on a lead or being tied up and pulling on the chain (neck injury)
• Play-fighting or rough play can lead to any sort of joint or back injury
• Being sat on perhaps by a child or jumped on by a heavy dog
• Giving birth
• Lack of exercise / lack of muscle tone
• Being over weight
• Inadequate bedding leading to stiffness and bedsores
• Cold and draughty kennelling
• Being left wet and cold after muscles have been warm during work

HORSES

Some symptoms and causes of back and joint pain

Symptoms

• Looking tucked up / roached with tail tightly clamped down
• Holding the tail to one side
• Continually resting one hind leg or shifting weight from one side to the other
• Snatching up a hind leg then gingerly lowering it again
• Jumping fast or flat over fences or refusing
• Hollowing, refusal to bend or work on the bit
• Inability to strike off on the correct canter lead
• Reduced impulsion from the hind quarters
• Dragging of toes and tripping
• Bucking, rearing, napping, kicking and biting
• Showing a reluctance to be saddled or mounted
• Generally showing difficulty and stiffness turning one or both ways
• Having difficulty in getting up after lying down
• Unequal hind stride length or shortened strides
• Unequal front limb stride or showing a rolling or dipping action
• Intermittent or unexplained lameness with no obvious signs of injury
• Displaying signs of sourness and depression or aggression
• Failing to stay the distance in a race / lack of stamina in working animal
• Generally a reduced level of performance
• Permanent or temporary holding of the body curved to one side
• Resisting having hind feet picked up or slamming a foot back to the ground
• Difficulty in shoeing, this may indicate pain on weight bearing in the opposite limb
• On turning sharply shuffling round rather than crossing a hind leg underneath body
• Uneven wear on shoes
• Difficulty in maintaining canter on one or both leads, or changing leads, or preference for only one lead
• Difficulty in strike off into canter from trot, instead rushing forward in faster trot
• Shivering or flinching when being groomed, especially over the withers/neck and poll
• Inability to bend head around to girth on both sides (carrot stretches)
• Throwing head around when being ridden or resisting contact
• Lack of enthusiasm for work, unwilling to stride out in walk
• Unable to lengthen strides or has a scratchy action at faster paces
• Knocking fences down which would normally clear easily or dangling front legs when jumping
• Wild and unpredictable on the lunge, in hand or being ridden
• Headshy or difficult to tack up
• Difficult to load or unbalanced when travelling, a horse needs to be able to balance itself on all 4 legs during travel

Causes

• Over-exertion especially when unfit
• Being over weight
• Jumping and getting hung up on a fence or dropping hind legs into a ditch
• Jumping onto a hard surface (concussion)
• Over-jumping to save themselves from a fall
• Falling or slipping
• Losing footing and twisting through lumbar spine (common in muddy conditions)
• Rearing and falling over backwards
• Hitting poll or head on low beam or doorway
• Getting cast
• Long-term lameness needing box rest or restricted exercise
• Not allowing for a recovery period after exertion
• Wear and tear over a period of time
• Speed
• Fast work or jumping on heavy or hard ground
• Playing/galloping when turned out can lead to any sort of joint or back injury
• Being kicked
• Being mounted by another horse
• Giving birth
• Lack of exercise / lack of muscle tone
• Inadequate bedding
• Being left wet and cold after muscles have been warm during work
• Lack of warm up and cool down exercises
• Ill-fitting tack
• Overuse of restrictive tack such as side reins or draw reins
• Being incorrectly ridden

IMPORTANT: Whilst all of these symptoms can be indicative of a back problem, they can also occur as a result of other underlying causes. It is therefore, important that your veterinarian is consulted first to rule out any other such causes, before consulting a Spinal Therapist.

Animal Patients

Before any animal practitioner can treat your animal, he/she needs veterinary approval - it is against the law for anyone apart from the vet or owner to undertake treatment of an animal. Only veterinarians can carry out surgery or any other invasive treatment e.g., administering injections unless they instruct someone to do so. All McTimoney-Corley Animal Spinal Therapists, should request that you ask for your vet's permission first. You may be asked to sign a disclaimer to say that you have done this - this is both for your animal's and the practitioner's protection.

On arrival the Spinal Therapist will ask a wide variety of questions, regarding any worries, concerns or problems you have experienced in relation to your animal. They may also ask questions regarding age, breed, feeding regime, worming, inoculations, past treatment, illnesses, temperament, behaviour, fitness program, amount and type of exercise etc. A background history helps to identify what might be causing a particular back problem e.g., a past trauma where the animal had a bad fall may direct their attention to a particular part of your animal's spine. It is likely that they will request to see your animal move at walk and/or a faster pace, to identify any lameness and possible gait abnormalities. Horse owners may be requested to ride their horses, especially if the owner has experienced problems whilst riding.

The Spinal Therapist will then begin to examine your animal more thoroughly firstly to identify any abnormalities e.g., lumps, bumps, old injuries, muscle wastage etc. They will then use their palpation skills to feel for muscle tension, spasms, pain and skeletal misalignments in the spinal area, which may indicate that nerves are trapped and therefore, not functioning properly. Besides palpating the spine, they will also check joints for appropriate range of motion.

After assessing your animal properly, the Spinal Therapist will then begin to apply appropriate manipulation adjustments. These adjustments help to relieve pressure on the nerves, free-up muscle tension/spasm and enable re-alignment of the spine thereby reducing pain. This allows the body to function normally, to its optimum, so it is free to heal itself.

After treatment the Spinal Therapist will recommend that your animal is rested for a stated number of days. Horse owners will be advised not to ride for a recommended number of days, although alternative types of exercise may be optional. There is usually no restriction on turnout time.

McTimoney-Corley Spinal Therapy

McTimoney-Corley Spinal Therapy is a method of restoring health by gentle corrective manipulation of the bones of the head, spinal column, pelvis and limbs, thereby ensuring the proper functioning of the nerves and endocrine systems which control the natural self-healing capability of the body.

It is important to realise that McTimoney-Corley Spinal Therapy does not just relieve pain, but it can, and often does, remove the cause of other disease. No cell or organ of the body can function properly without its correct supply of nerve impulses.

McTimoney-Corley Spinal Therapists are trained to assess bone misalignments by using their hands, and to correct any of these subluxations with highly refined yet extremely gentle manipulations. Remedial exercises will be recommended and advice will always be given to help avoid a recurrence of the problem. The whole body is usually treated during each session, because a problem in one part of the body can lead to problems in other areas. Hence our motto, 'The Whole Body Whole'.

McTimoney-Corley Spinal Therapy, when used regularly, can also be used as a preventative therapy.

This therapy has also been successfully adapted to treat most animals, especially horses and dogs.