Anyone have experience with laser therapy to treat pain?
Has anyone here ever tried it? If so, how did it work out for your dog? How many sessions did you do before you saw results? What did you pay? (I don't care about the cost but I never like to feel like I'm getting ripped off!) I just want Bear to feel better. We painfully (for me) cut off all of his cords to lighten him up and take pressure off his back (he went from 130 pounds to just around 100 after the hair cut!). He seems so sad and tiny compared to how he looked before but I know the lightened load is for the best. My poor dog. |
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| Jill Our PT in Dexter has done laser therapy on Mattie. She also has arthritis in her spine and bad hips. You can just see her body completely relax when the laser gets put on her back. We did it once a week for a month. She seems happier, but she never really shows pain unless she's being stretched after walking on the treadmill. I can't remember what she charged. When we had it done she was running a special. I want to say 35.00 a session, but I really am not sure. When Mattie seems to be having a bad week, we have a treatment done. Good Luck, let us know how it goes if you decide to have it done. Lisa Frankie and Mattie |
babysheepie wrote: Jill Our PT in Dexter has done laser therapy on Mattie. She also has arthritis in her spine and bad hips. You can just see her body completely relax when the laser gets put on her back. We did it once a week for a month. She seems happier, but she never really shows pain unless she's being stretched after walking on the treadmill. I can't remember what she charged. When we had it done she was running a special. I want to say 35.00 a session, but I really am not sure. When Mattie seems to be having a bad week, we have a treatment done. Good Luck, let us know how it goes if you decide to have it done. Lisa Frankie and Mattie That was similar to what my co-worker said, too: that his dog would just relax and get an almost euphoric look on her face during the treatment and for a time afterward. I'm glad to hear that Mattie had a similar experience. How long does the relief seem to last for her after the treatment? |
| Mattie would be good for a week until her next treatment. When we would try to go 2 or 3 weeks it would be too long. Mattie takes 2 Tramadol a day and 50 mg of Rimadyl a day. Have you tried any herbal pain relievers? We had alot of luck with Frankie on one called Body Sore. I would get it from the PT. I'm not sure how old Bear is, but I have been told about a plasma treatment that a place in Canton does. It's part of the Stem Cell procedure minus the stem cell part. They have suggested I try it on Mattie. Lisa Frankie and Mattie |
We had a 6 week, once a week treatment with Kelsey at age 10 and it was wonderfull. She benefited a lot from that, in fact after she came home she was so relaxed and would go off into a deep relaxed sleep for a few hours. While being treated it was a joy to see her enjoying the therapy, in fact while it was done she groaned some happy noises almost orgasmic   , she loved it  Wont hurt to try with bear and I am sure he will benefit a lot from it & enjoy the therapy, so yes give it a go.  |
Max had 4 months of treatments, three times a week after his spinal injury. We are certain it was the thing that finally helped him. He did not walk on his back legs for close to 5 months -- we had to use a sling, or carry him. We had tried all kinds of things suggested by our previous Vet. Out of desperation to help him, I called another "farm" vet-- who told me the laser helped down horses, and he was certain it could help Max. Within two weeks he was standing, and after several more treatments , taking steps etc. I can't remember the exact cost, but I am thinking around $30 a treatment. By that point, we were fondly calling him our " Million Dollar Baby", and I tried to block it  I saw go for it!! |
I tried it maybe 5 years ago? through a homeopathic vet but he didn't have the Class IV. Not sure the level but it might have been like using a UPC scanner in comparison.  Panda had both the laser therapy and V.O.M. treatments and honestly, she seemed to move easier after them. She got so she'd come home and race around like an goof so we had to slow her down. But then the vet retired. A couple of weeks ago we took Bumble in for some digital x-rays by a vet we'd seen years ago. Dr. Peck started offering the Class IV laser therapy earlier this year. He said he offers treatment packages that require a minimum of 7 sessions... no fewer because he said people have to give it a chance to work. So we will likely try the laser therapy again. Here's an article about it along with his fees... granted, we're farther north than you. http://www.traverseanimalhospital.com/S ... t-NMVH.pdf Is Bears spine fusing? It's sounds awful for me to look forward to Panda's spine fusing but I was told that.... "...The back x-ray is pretty dramatic but once the spine is fused the pain should be minimal. The hips are another issue..." She was in pain last night... I think it was her right hip mainly but I put a gently snugged jacket on her after giving her tramadol. Thinking a little support of her spine might not be a bad idea and it holds in the warmth. (I used a Thundershirt.) I figured it might also help me get her to her feet in the morning if it happened to get worse. She went to bed so I took a Bed Buddy warmed pack and placed it on her hips and spine for a short time (supervised only... we'll talk memory foam bed another time  ), then covered her back and hips with a fleece blanket. Warmth is said to help help if it's arthritis so I try to cover her back/hips at night. The dummy flew out of bed this morning to get her breakfast. It's so hard seeing dogs sick or in pain. And when it's back pain, you don't know really how to help them move without causing even more pain.  I would definitely give it the laser therapy a try to see if it might give Bear some relief. One thing noted in the article is that you may eventually be able to extend the time between treatments. If you try the laser therapy, please let us know how Bear does? |
| Thanks for all your replies, everyone. I'm going to do it. I haven't heard anyone with a negative, or even neutral result so it seems definitely worth a try. Jaci, I'm not sure if his spine is fusing at this point. He hasn't had a back x-ray with this incident yet. His back has been a lifelong problem, though. His back end has been shaking since he was about two (nothing like now though). It seems to get better for awhile and then he'll be a little shakier than before. I have to admit, all of his hair was hiding a lot of this problem and I think we may have missed earlier signs of his pain because, frankly, we couldn't see it under the 30 pounds of cords. He's always been a neurotic dog and he gets shaky in nervous situations so we chalked up a lot of his tremors to psychological issues rather than physiological. Now I'm not so sure. But, I'm happy to say that even with the few days of meds, I'm starting to see a bit of improvement. For a couple terrible days, he had become completely incontinent and that's stopped. He's moving around the house instead of staying only in the kitchen like he normally does. He just walked over, jumped up on the couch and stole a toy from Clyde and Owen so he must be feeling slightly better enough to go back to his old ways of fun-killing for the sheepdogs. I hope this continues. Maybe the laser will only help more. |
| I don't have any experience with the laser, but I wanted to say I'm sorry Bear is doing poorly. Too bad about the cords, but wow - 30# is a significant weight loss! How old is he now? I'm not up on my Komondor facts - what is expected lifespan? Hugs! |
| I hope the laser treatment helps. Sounds like a very worthwhile option. Poor baby. Stealing a toy is a very good sign. I would love to see a picture of him without the cords. |
| I'm with Val-- in all respects. Fingers crossed that the treatments help-- and would LOVE to see sweet bear without his cords. |
| I'll post some pictures after I "finish" him. The haircut was not a good one. He was completely collapsing at that point and, I can't remember if I mentioned it here, but during the haircut, I cut him pretty bad with sharp grooming scissors and wound up at the emergency vet in mid-groom for stitches (as if he wasn't miserable enough!). I haven't gone over him again (with clippers-- no scissors this time) because I thought he deserved a break and I hoped he might feel better. It looks like he might be up to it now but, unfortunately, I have a raging cold so I don't know if I'm up for it. I did take pictures of the hair piles after the cut, which were pretty amazing. I needed 3 full size garbage bags that were filled to the brim. I'll post all those at once after Bear is complete and he doesn't look like a sad, homeless dog. |
| Oh my word! Poor Bear! Has he ever been without cords? |
| They've been growing throughout his life. The cording process doesn't even begin until they're around 8-12 months, when the hair starts clumping together to form the cords. From there, you work with them to keep them neat as they grow, with weekly separating and debris removal. Komondor hair doesn't grow like an OES so it's a long, slow process to get the cords to where they were. At 6 years old, his hair was finally hitting the floor and what you'd call a really full coat. He'll never reach that point again in his lifetime. |
Aww... I'm glad to hear Bear's displaying some of his previous behaviors.  That's really good news!ButtersStotch wrote: From there, you work with them to keep them neat as they grow, with weekly separating and debris removal. Komondor hair doesn't grow like an OES so it's a long, slow process to get the cords to where they were. I'm really sorry, Jill. I can only imagine how hard it had to be taking them off. I never would have guessed his hair weighed so much! But wow... 30 pounds less with just a haircut is a wonderful way to help him move a little easier. A shorter coat will help you gauge how lean you can keep him without going too lean. ButtersStotch wrote: I'll post some pictures after I "finish" him. The haircut was not a good one. Ok... so I guess I have no pride. I posted post-surgery pictures of Bumble that weren't too pretty. When our dogs are sick or hurting, there are times they just won't look their best because they can't tolerate the grooming. I have a homeopathic vet down in Louisiana that's helped Panda over the years. When I take her off Betaine Hydrochloride, she reverts back to obsessive drinking and peeing in the house, hunger, loud stomach noises, gas, vomiting, etc.). But she can't take NSAIDS like Metacam or Previcox or steroids with it. So we go with Tramadol when there are signs of pain. She also takes Glycoflex III and Devil's Claw http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/devi ... 000237.htm . I use Nature's Way Standardized in the purple bottle... it's for short term use. I don't know if Devil's Claw would be appropriate for Bear with the other meds he's taking but thought I'd share the link just in case. |
| I don't have an opion or advise, but I wanted to tell you how sorry I am that Bear is having these issues with his back. I hope the laser theropy helps him. I'm glad he felt good enough to jump up on the couch...he's much like Violet, she loves to ruin the fun of the Aussies. Gentle hugs to Bear. |
glad to hear bear is responding  to meds and haircut...if you want to call and vent everything in your wonderful dry sarcastic humor, im here..... |
| Aw poor Bear!! We did laser therapy, physical therapy and hydro therapy for one of the dog's in our rescue program that had hip surgery and one shorter leg. I'm not sure if his adoptive family continued and what the results were, but I can ask. We use a vet rehab center that is super close to my house that my friend works at so I visit often. I trust her when she says a lot of dogs have had a new lease on life with the therapies combined with supplements. We were actually going to start hydro with Marley for her knee, but the fish oil and glucosamine we started giving her have completely minimized her pain. Good luck with Bear. |
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