Chapter 21 Conditions and Rehabilitation of the Working Dog 527structures. Eventually, a working dog may
become unable to fully perform its duties, with
the actual primary cause being difficult to
source. Just treating these animals with NSAIDs
or rest does not solve the problem until the
source musculoskeletal problem(s) can be iden-
tified and treated.
Abnormalities in body movement patterns
can be understood via two different mecha-
nisms. First, the “Law of Sides” states how
lameness compensation patterns tend to pro-
gress. Taken from equine gait analysis research,
this states that, when there are both primary
and compensatory causes of lameness, know-
ing whether the pattern is contralateral or ipsi-
lateral can help predict which limb has
experienced the primary injury.
If the lameness presents as a diagonal pattern
(e.g., left thoracic and right pelvic limbs are
involved), then there is a significant probability
that the primary lameness is present in the tho-
racic limb. If the lameness presents as an ipsilat-
eral combination (e.g., left thoracic and left
pelvic limbs are involved), then there is a sig-
nificant chance that the primary lameness is in
the pelvic limb (Keegan, 2004, 2005a, 2005b;
Maliye & Marshall, 2016). While this has not yet
been experimentally substantiated in the dog,
the authors have found this a useful tool for
identifying primary and compensatory injuries
in dogs. It is certainly an area open for future
research in the canine athlete.
The second way that movement abnormali-
ties can be identified incorporates new work
from human fascial research. The common
belief that movement is created by compart-
mentalized and discrete muscle units that act
on their own is starting to be transformed as a
result of our developing understanding of
body-wide muscle and fascial integration
(Schleip et al., 2012). Direct morphological con-
tinuity of muscular and organized connective
tissue in chains has been demonstrated in both
the human and the horse (Elbrond & Schultz,
2015; Wilke et al., 2016a). These fascial chains
transfer tension by regulating changes in stiff-
ness between adjacent myofascial structures
(Krause et al., 2016). Stretching and stimulating
fascia is a doorway for the therapist into miti-
gating cellular responses to injury and stress,
including the release of resolvins—anti-inflam-
matory modulators synthesized by polyunsat-
urated dietary fats (Corey et al., 2012; Berrueta
et al., 2016). Stretching of one area along a fas-
cial chain (in this case a pelvic limb) has been
demonstrated to improve flexibility in a more
remote area such as the neck (Wilke et al., 2016b,
2016c). Understanding the fascial transmission
chains can help the veterinary rehabilitation
therapist diagnose injury and predict injury
propagation.
The presence of these myofascial pathways
has not been demonstrated in the dog, but as a
quadruped, these chains are postulated to be
similar to those in the horse. In addition to their
diagnostic and therapeutic value, knowledge of
myofascial chain orientations may assist veteri-
nary therapists in designing multifocal rehabili-
tation protocols for more severe injuries. This
interconnectedness means that the little things
matter; the foot bone really is connected to the
neck bone.
Techniques for identifying dynamic lame-
ness in the dog can include flexion tests similar
to those performed in horses by flexing indi-
vidual joints, holding for 30 seconds, then hav-
ing the dog trotted or walked off (Figure 21.5).
Another lameness assessment technique is to
gait the dog on both soft and hard surfaces (e.g.,
a grass lawn and a cement sidewalk). Clinical
observation suggests that a lameness thatFigure 21.5 Flexing and holding one or more joints
then having the dog trot can increase the severity of
lameness, thus helping to localize an injury.