May 2024
Happy May clients!
We would like to congratulate Carrie on the birth of her second child. She will be on leave for the next few months so please be patient with us as we navigate without her.
This month we will discuss our senior pets. We all hope for our dogs and cats to live forever, but we are most often only graced with 10 to 20 years. We want to help their “golden years” to be as wonderful as possible. The best way to help add quality of life to these years, is focusing on mobility.
With age, arthritis pains increase, muscle loss or sarcopenia occurs, and other internal problems could be occurring causing increasing difficulty with activities of daily living. There are some wonderful tools that can be implemented in the environment to help aid in “golden year” independent mobility.
We often hear that a senior pet is no longer able to get on to the bed without assistance. Many pet parents have tried a variety of stairs but these can be awkward for some pets to use. The ideal piece of equipment would be something that cuts the distance in half, but also has enough space for all 4 feet to jump onto.
The K9 Klimb is a great tool to use for our medium to large breed dogs to use to get on and off the bed. In order to practically use the equipment, we never want to force them to use some thing that is, but we want to continue to encourage and use positive reinforcement to get them comfortable with these tools.
Same concept should also be used for getting in and out of vehicles. May prefer a ramp with the assistance of a Help Em Up Harness.
Ensuring that this is attempted and trained in a calm environment at home. Do not attempt these new techniques in a strange new place or an open parking lot where things are a bit more scary
Toe Grips
Another problem we often hear is my senior cannot get off the floor easily. One recommendation could be to cover the floor with yoga mats. These can be easily rolled up when guest come over and they are easy to clean. We recommend purchasing a yoga mat roll, that that you can cut the mat into specific dimensions that you require in your house.
There are other tools that you can put on the pets such as grips or booties. These can be helpful, but the toe grips need to be replaced frequently or booties need to be put on and put off.
When your pet’s mobility limits them from taking walks, bringing them along in a cart or stroller can help to improve their mental stimulation.
Ultimately, there are many ways we can adapt the environment during their “Golden years” to continue to help them to live their best life.
Peace and love,