IPC, CACC & essential oils!

We have only 3 more days of the course left – I seriously cannot believe how fast it has gone.

In the last few days I have made my own essential oil; learnt about the lymphatic system (especially important to know where the major nodes are); cross fibre friction (great for the paws and forearms – human as well as canine); learnt much more about complementary modalities including reiki, acupressure and essential oils;  visited Integrative Pet Care (truly awesome facility); learnt how to write up SOAP notes; worked on the wonderful Fifty; observed gait on various dogs; learnt more about delivering a Pet Parent class; visited Chicago Animal Care and Control; worked on lots more dogs; oh yes, and played Trivial Pursuit – the canine massage version.

The afternoon visit to Integrative Pet Care was great.  They had arranged a full schedule for us so we watched various treatments in 30 min segments.  We started by observing one dog receiving laser treatment for her arthritic elbow while another was receiving shock wave therapy on a suspected torn ligament.  Our good friend Fifty then came in for a massage so watched a qualified canine massage therapist do that; then watched Eos the cat receiving laser on her back legs.  Fifty then got laser therapy which nearly sent him and us to sleep.  One of the Vets demonstrated acupuncture on her dog – he didn’t seem to mind one bit despite having about 10 needles in him.  We also observed a number of dogs getting hydrotherapy on the underwater treadmill….works wonders with some peanut butter smeared on the far end as motivation ;) 

It really is a great place, has a big gym room with lots of equipment and is very calm and inviting.  The dogs seemed to be loving it.

The visit to CACC on Saturday afternoon was full on!  They can take up to 400 dogs at any one time.  We saw a tiny number of them, I think 7 in all.  We were basically doing trust building, observing their gait and wherever possible providing some massage relief from their tight ischemic muscles.  They were all gorgeous dogs, sad stories have brought them there but they’ll soon find their forever homes.  Again, it made me think how stressful it must be for dogs to find themselves in a shelter, and the positive experience and relief they get from seeing us and getting some hands on treatment.

On Saturday morning we also worked on a 12 year old 3 legged Chihuahua, an 8 year old Rottie mix with a mean looking underbite ;), and a 10 month old Weimaraner with spinal dysraphism who finally calmed down enough for us to provide some good massage.

Phew – watch this space to see what the final few days have in store!

Debs arrives Tuesday night and I am good and ready to  p a r t a y  in Chicago on Wed night…….:)