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THIS CHAPTER INTRODUCES four gentle hands-on techniques you can do on your own that generate healing energy and improve the physical health of your dog. The importance of human contact cannot be overemphasized. Petting and stroking keep you connected to your dog, creating an interchange of love and energy benefiting both you and your animal companion. Massages are a good way to take physical contact to a level of healing. If, through your massage activity, you detect a growth or area of extreme sensitivity or pain to your dog, be sure to bring it to your veterinarian’s attention.
Start with gentle stroking of the ears in a circular, clockwise fashion. As you gently massage the ears, which are rich in acupuncture points, you are in a sense stimulating or treating every major organ in the body. You are sending a minute electrical impulse to each organ. Near the base of the ear is located the thermostat of the body. By massaging here, we also increase the temperature of the body. You can experience this by rubbing your own ears.
Once you have raised the energy by massaging the ears, gently stroke the animal from head to tail to direct the energy flow. Do this daily for a house pet, if possible. Often when a problem is developing, a sensitivity will appear in an associated acupoint or meridian, sometimes twenty-four hours before symptoms show up. By understanding this and being aware that your pet has suddenly developed a sensitivity at a given point, you can, through gentle massage, cause the energy to flow to the part and stimulate healing before a major problem arises.
This light touch massage covers various acupuncture points on the body and acts in a sense as a very mild acupuncture treatment, releasing spasm and possible trigger points. For dogs with pain and stiffness in the back, this massage generates more limberness.
Make small circles with two fingers of both hands, starting at the base of the ears, and slowly work your way down along both sides of the spine. Make two or three circles on the skin at each spot as you move down just to the right and the left of the spine, along the big muscles. Don’t exert a lot of pressure and push on the muscles. Be delicate. You just want to move the skin over the muscles with a light touch. As time goes on a bigger dog may enjoy a deep massage. But always start light, so the muscles will relax. If you start massaging too hard, the muscles tense up, and the dog will want to get away, because it is painful.
Massage gently in this light touch manner down to the base of the tail and then back up again. If you hit a point where you notice an actual release of heat, that is an area of muscle spasm that has just relaxed. If you encounter this phenomenon, concentrate on the area. It will feel as if you have been on a heating pad at that spot.
A gentle massage of the muscles along the spine helps work out tension and increase blood flow for dogs with arthritis, mild disc problems, or injuries and also serves as a general massage. The technique is simple and involves kneading or massaging the muscles in small clockwise circles. This puts energy into the body.
To massage trouble spots along the spine, run the palm of your hand slowly just over the surface of the coat. Move your hand from front to the rear, from the shoulder to the tailbone. Do this several times. Quietly notice if some areas give off an increase in heat. Any animal who has arthritis or trouble walking will give off more heat in certain spots. Those are areas of spasm or tension. You will be surprised how easy it is to feel the areas of heat. If you don’t detect any heat, move your hand higher to about one to two inches above the body and again slowly move it from front to rear. Now you are attempting to detect radiant heat that may be emanating from the animal.
A second technique I call “the 4-4-4 rule” will help generate relief for any animal with mild disc and lumbar problems. Check with your veterinarian to be sure that there are no contraindications.
Hold the middle of the tail with your strong hand. Use the other hand for leverage, and hold on to the shoulder. Now gently tug on the tail for four seconds, as if it were a rope and you were pulling it away from the animal’s body. Apply very mild pressure, the equivalent of pressing a bathroom scale to read one or two pounds. Then release the pressure for four seconds.
Do the maneuver a total of four times, increasing the traction slightly each time. Sometimes you will hear a pop, even in the tail, when a misalignment goes back into place. When doing this procedure, never apply too much pressure and never jerk the tail. If the animal doesn’t like it, don’t do it. Most like it, however.
All the vertebrae that run down the spine are connected, like a rope. This simple action opens microspaces along the length of the spine, allowing a bit more room for blood vessels and nerves that might otherwise be pinched. If there is a disc problem, it will create more space for the disc to return gradually to its normal position.
Use this technique until the animal improves. I generally recommend it daily for a week, then two or three times for two weeks, and then as needed.
A simple method for calming anxiety or aggressive behavior is to massage an acupressure point on the head. If you have an acupuncture chart handy, it is point GV20. Specifically, it is located in the central indentation on the top of the skull that runs from front to back and just forward of a make-believe line connecting the ears. This is considered an energizing point for the front of the body.
Massage the point daily for thirty seconds to a minute in a clockwise direction. This has been shown in many cases to calm a nervous or aggressive animal. If you do this with an aggressive animal, just make sure you don’t run the risk of getting bitten.