Observing the Dog Collar When Caring For Your Dog’s Neck
- By Damian Cross
- Published 02/2/2010
- Pets
- Unrated
During an afternoon visit to a friend, he recommended I read The Well Adjusted Dog by Dr. Daniel Kamen. This book was written by a chiropractor, who also seems to do some adjustments on dogs, although not openly. It seems that in the United States chiropractors, who work on people, are not allowed to work on animals. Only veterinarians trained to be animal chiropractors can perform adjustments on animals, which is not that easy to do.
Apparently Dr. Kamen wrote the book with the purpose of teaching pet owners at home how to do adjustments to their own pets. The book provides abundant information on the anatomy of dogs, the structure of their spine and a few healing techniques that pet owners can easily learn to do at home. Most of the lessons refer to tense muscles, since many pet owners are not quite comfortable with approaching the spinal column.
A very interesting part of the book explains how certain dog collars can have negative effects on the spine of your dog. A poorly designed dog collar, along with improper handling of the leash could lead to severe problems in the neck and spine of the animal.
Basically, there are five different types of collars available to pet owners, the regular leather and nylon collar, the prong collar, the choke collar, the harness and the leader or head collar. Though I was under the impression that the harness was actually the best choice, to my surprise it is the leading cause for problems in misalignment in the spinal cord.
There are several other outside influences that may affect your dog’s neck and spine. For example, when training dogs, even at the competition level, they are taught to sit on one side and look up to their trainer. This causes a lot of strain on the neck and shoulders. The large discrepancy between the dog size and the handler’s size, dog weight issues, inadequate bedding arrangements, dangerous dog games, the length and improper handling of the leash, and the manner in which some dogs are bred are also common causes for problems in the spinal cord.
It seems rather unlikely that you will follow every move that your dog makes. It maybe that he has found a more comfortable spot in the hard floor close to the kitchen, instead of the expensive new blanket you just got him. It may also be the case that he tried too hard when going for the Frisbee and strained his back to some extent. The issue is to observe your dog in his daily activities in order to identify certain behavior that may cause neck and back problems. If you are a more do it yourself kind of person, you might want to try picking a copy the book – The Well Adjusted Dog – for checking problems in the spine. Once you have learned to identify problems, you might also want to try correcting them. By learning how to treat your dog for back pain you will be granting him a much more enjoyable and pain free life experience.
Apparently Dr. Kamen wrote the book with the purpose of teaching pet owners at home how to do adjustments to their own pets. The book provides abundant information on the anatomy of dogs, the structure of their spine and a few healing techniques that pet owners can easily learn to do at home. Most of the lessons refer to tense muscles, since many pet owners are not quite comfortable with approaching the spinal column.
A very interesting part of the book explains how certain dog collars can have negative effects on the spine of your dog. A poorly designed dog collar, along with improper handling of the leash could lead to severe problems in the neck and spine of the animal.
Basically, there are five different types of collars available to pet owners, the regular leather and nylon collar, the prong collar, the choke collar, the harness and the leader or head collar. Though I was under the impression that the harness was actually the best choice, to my surprise it is the leading cause for problems in misalignment in the spinal cord.
There are several other outside influences that may affect your dog’s neck and spine. For example, when training dogs, even at the competition level, they are taught to sit on one side and look up to their trainer. This causes a lot of strain on the neck and shoulders. The large discrepancy between the dog size and the handler’s size, dog weight issues, inadequate bedding arrangements, dangerous dog games, the length and improper handling of the leash, and the manner in which some dogs are bred are also common causes for problems in the spinal cord.
It seems rather unlikely that you will follow every move that your dog makes. It maybe that he has found a more comfortable spot in the hard floor close to the kitchen, instead of the expensive new blanket you just got him. It may also be the case that he tried too hard when going for the Frisbee and strained his back to some extent. The issue is to observe your dog in his daily activities in order to identify certain behavior that may cause neck and back problems. If you are a more do it yourself kind of person, you might want to try picking a copy the book – The Well Adjusted Dog – for checking problems in the spine. Once you have learned to identify problems, you might also want to try correcting them. By learning how to treat your dog for back pain you will be granting him a much more enjoyable and pain free life experience.
Damian Cross
Play fun filled dog games and the cutest puppy games online now. All the best free dog games available at doggames123.com
View all articles by Damian Cross