Chapter 21 Conditions and Rehabilitation of the Working Dog 525dealing with pet dogs. While working with
high-drive clients can also be true for thera-
pists who work with competitive dogs and
their handlers, many working dogs are not
owned by individuals but rather by agencies.
Each agency has its unique hierarchy of proto-
cols, and goals for their canine “assets” and
“property.” As a result, there can be many team
members, including the veterinarian, trying to
resolve the issue of why a dog cannot work.
Chains of command can include handlers,
budget-watching accountants, and administra-
tors to whom the dog is a tool, not an individ-
ual being. Although mindsets and perspectives
in some agencies are expanding, there still can
be individuals in the team who are unaware of
new developments in canine sports medicine or
who still do not perceive dogs as athletes with
injuries and treatment needs similar to those in
human sports medicine. Sometimes there is
more focus on an animal’s ability to quickly
return to some level of function, rather than the
importance of full and stable recovery. This is
where a veterinarian knowledgeable in
nuances of the sports medicine demands of a
particular canine job can communicate and
educate those who handle, train, and manage
these working canine athletes. And this in the
long run can only improve working function
and longevity.Clinical approach to sports medicine
and rehabilitation of working dogsWhile working dogs share their anatomy, bio-
mechanics, and physiology with pet and com-
petitive dogs, there are unique aspects of
veterinary care for working dogs. Instead of
the usual partnership between veterinarian
and client, working dogs often come with other
vested parties. To create a functional team with
the goal of restoring the health and function of
a working canine athlete, working dog thera-
pists should recognize that there are three ele-
ments that must be brought together and
balanced. These elements are: (1) the sports
medicine and rehabilitation professional’s
knowledge base and medical perspective; (2)
the handler’s knowledge base, job, and admin-
istrative goals; and (3) the owning or sponsor-
ing agency and its needs and financialBox 21.1 Canine working drives.* Source: Adapted from Bryson (2000) and Volhard (2013).Basic drives● Prey (or hunt): hunting, killing, ingesting prey
● Pack: emotional contact with other members of a
group
● Defense (fight or flight): behaviors associated
with survival and self-preservation or preserva-
tion of the packSubdrives selected for in various working dogs● Rank: a desire to move higher in the pack hierarchy
● Fight: attack or aggression towards a perceived
threat
● Guard: defend territory● Protection: defend individuals of the pack
● Hunt: pursue objects even those out of sight
● Track: work ground scent
● Air scent: work air or windborne scent
● Retrieve: instinct to bring an object back to the
pack
● Homing: return to a specific territory or to the
pack
● Play: not well understood but play seems to help
strengthen pack hierarchy and teach hunting
skills among other biological benefits
● Responsiveness or trainability: desire to obey the
pack leader
*These do not include reproduction, urination, defecation
and hunger.Box 21.2 Temperament traits selected for in
working dogs. Source: Bryson (2000).Positive
● Courage, bravery, hardness: positive response
to stress (thought to be mostly genetic)
● Confidence: positive response to stress (condi-
tioned by training)
● Normal sensory threshold: lowest level that a
stimulus elicits a response
Negative● Softness, shyness, aloofness: negative response
to stress
● Sharpness: excessively aggressive response to
stimuli