Rehabilitation Services

Veterinary Massage and Rehabilitation Therapy (VMRT)

Mission Statement

As your pet’s therapist, I vow to work with you and your pet to set realistic goals for your pet’s future. In doing this, we will reduce pain, reduce chance of injury and achieve a better overall quality of life for your pet.

-Morgan, CVT, CVMRT

What is VMRT?

• VMRT is a crucial part of rehabilitation therapy and  conventional veterinary health care.
• VMRT is a health care modality that uses hands on therapy techniques such as:
  • Massage and targeted exercises
• There are also other electric modalities like:
  • Laser therapy and TENS therapy, which increase a patients quality of life and maintain conditioning of the patients.

What happens in a VMRT appointment?

Each patient is treated individually and the rehab program is tailored to that particular patient. There may be similarities between cases, but no two patients are alike. To use VMRT to the patients benefit, the therapist must understand and apply functional neurology, anatomy and biomechanics to improve on patient outcome.

• We start with a initial 1 hour exam. This exam includes: a physical exam, musculoskeletal exam, neurological exam, gait and posture analysis along with joint range of motion measurements and muscle girth measurements. Once these results are all taken into consideration, along with the primary complaint, I will formulate a 4 week program for your pet.
• Over the next 4 weeks we will meet 1-2 times per week and at the end of the 4 weeks we will recheck all the parameters checked at the initial exam. From there, I will determine if the program needs to continue, if your pet needs a maintenance plan or if he/she is able to graduate the program.

The condition of your pet will determine which combination of modalities will be used to achieve the best results at the correct pace for your pet.

Who is a rehabilitation patient?

Rehab can benefit a multitude of patients. Geriatric patients can benefit both mentally and physically. Rehab can help maintain or improve the performance and overall strength and conditioning of sport and performance patients. Rehab is also crucial for post-op patients and patients with pre-existing conditions.

Rehab can help to improve and/or slow the progression of:

• Pain management
• Increase muscle strength/tone
• Maintenance conditioning
• Restore mobility
• Osteoarthritis
• Hip and elbow dysplasia
• Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD)
• Tendinopathies
• Intervertebral disc disease (IVDD)
• Fibrocartilaginous embolism (FCE)
• Degenerative Myelopathy (DM)
• Wobbler Syndrome
• Vestibular disease
• Obesity
• Sports injuries
• Fractures
• Surgical patients