Play and Massage

The Benefits of Play and Massage in Your Relationship With Your Dog

The importance of a relationship with your dog based on something other than only the guide work cannot be over emphasized. Throughout your dog’s life, it has formed bonds—first with other puppies, then with its puppy raiser, its trainer, and now you. The early relationships involved a lot of physical contact and play—allowing your puppy to develop socially both as a dog and then as part of a human family. The trainer introduced new levels of responsibility in your dog’s life, but balanced these demands for work with praise and physical contact. This reinforces the love and bond on which your dog’s work is based. Your ability to play and interact with your dog beyond its work will allow you to build a relationship that is balanced. It will enable you to reduce the stress not only in your dog’s life but probably in your own as well.

Play

Almost all animals participate in play as youngsters. It helps them to develop critical muscles and skills to be used later in life. It also helps them learn how they fit into a social structure. As Robert Fagan explains in his book “Animal Play Behavior” “like grooming, play exerts a cohesive force that keeps individuals and societies together and strengthens bonding and cohesion. In a word it is social glue.” From Pg. 342. In these initial days with your dog, play serves as an additional means for you and your dog to get to know each other. Playing in the room before or after work sessions can also significantly help to reduce the confusion and stress that your dog is feeling at the start of this relationship. Play can include sitting on the floor and sliding the nyla bone, throwing the Kong or gently wrestling with your dog. Most of these dogs will quickly respond to you being on the floor and will soon show you how they like to play. Other dogs may be more shy or naturally less playful and will need more enticement. A traditional invitation to play is known as the play bow. A dog will entice another dog to play by having their front legs on the floor as they are when they lie down while leaving their hindquarters in the air. Other techniques include petting your dog in your lap and transitioning into a belly rub and then gently wrestling. Dogs can also become playful if you play with their muzzle or push them away playfully as dogs do to each other in play. Other dogs may enjoy a more calm bonding play activity like chewing on the nyla bone while you hold it. Experiment with these techniques as you get to know your dog. If you would like assistance or advice please ask your instructor. Often our knowledge of your dog or a little observation can allow us to provide tips for getting your dog to play. Later in class with additional freedom on the long line and then being loose in the room, your dog will have more room to frolic. Throughout your dog’s life play will be an important means of stress reduction.

When your dog was first brought from their family back into our kennels, we allow them to play with each other which significantly helps them acclimate to the kennels. Throughout training they have had at least four sessions a day to play with each other and blow off the steam of being trained. Now they look to you to provide that outlet. As you go home and they are in a new environment stress will increase again. It will be important to continue the playing that you start here. Be sure to take whatever information we have about your dog’s puppy play activities from your dog’s puppy profile and apply it as much as possible as you go home.

In your home environment you may also have opportunities to play with your dog outside on a long line or in a fenced-in area or in a large open room. In these settings you may find your dog to be a natural retriever even if you have a Shepherd as they incessantly return to you with a recovered Kong or tennis ball. This kind of more active play can also serve as additional exercise during times when you can’t work your dog as often. There are also play activities indoors for bad weather days. Hide and seek with you or a favorite toy can help to keep your dog’s mind and muscles sharp while also being a stress reducing fun game. You can ask your dog to rest while you hide yourself or an object in another room and then call your dog to find you or the object. Start with an easy find and then progress to more difficult ones. Your dog will catch on quickly and might love the game. Play can be a benefit to your dog in the same way it has been seen to be in wild and domesticated cats as a play of relief. Cats will play with their prey after a particularly difficult chase and catch—and as Robert Fagan points out, “this behavior is reminiscent of humans laughing and slapping each other in relief after escaping from a very tense or dangerous situation.” From Pg. 163 of “Animal Play Behavior” So be sure to put an extra play session during stressful periods for your dog’s work. This kind of play can also have the long-term benefit of keeping your dog useful and flexible. Playing definitely does help you bond and reduce stress in your dog which will also help it to be calm in new situations as you go home and into your daily activities with your new dog.

Massage

Another very important component of the dog human relationship is touch. There have been many studies done on the benefits of extended petting or massaging your dog. Dr. Michael W. Fox begins his book “The Healing Touch” by responding to the thought that many of you may be having right now—“On the surface massage may seem like a frivolous idea, but the fact is that dog and cat massage has so many physical and psychological benefits for your pet that you could almost call it an essential of health care—like grooming, feeding, exercise, Etc. In fact I might go so far as to say that pets benefit more from massage than human beings do.” The numerous benefits of massage include:

   1. Improving the health of the animal by increasing circulation and increasing your awareness of unusual lumps, bumps and pains. Dogs will often work and play with pain until it becomes severe. Through massage you may detect a more minor pain and seek veterinarian care before it becomes more serious.

   2. Deepening your attachment to each other allowing you to bond further.

   3. Providing extended praise to your dog for a good day’s work.

   4. Allowing your dog to be accustomed to being handledwhich will make veterinary exams or emergencies less stressful.

   5. Reducing stress in your dog by lowering heart rate and providing the dog a quiet, peaceful relaxing experience.

And finally reducing your stress and heart rate as it has also been proven to do.

Dr. Michael Fox also explains that in domesticating dogs we have made them “more dependent and infantile in their behavior than their wild counterparts. As a result they have a greater need to be given tender loving care. This can be in the form of random petting or it can be a systematic pleasurable stimulation from the massage system which he describes.” Like young babies dogs need and seek close physical contact and as your dog bonds to you your dog will look to you to fulfill that need. Massage can initially serve as extended praise as you and your dog build trust in each other. Again as Dr. Michael Fox explains research has shown that physical contact for an animal who is emotionally attached to a human being is as rewarding as being given a morsel of favorite food. We certainly capitalize on this in working with Seeing Eye dogs. Just as you praise them with a pet at the end of the block you can praise them at the end of the day with a massage. You will need to start gently and slowly touching your dog only where they are comfortable. Some dogs are sensitive to having their paws and hindquarters handled. As they become more trusting of you and get accustomed to these massage sessions you may be able to do more. Don’t get frustrated if your dog doesn’t lie still initially. They have never had this done to them before and are not used to this type of touch. Certainly don’t wrestle them down to enjoy it. Find out what they like and start from there. There’s no special order of the massage session. Just make sure you are relaxed so this feeling gets passed on to your dog. Pick a time during the day and start to make it part of your routine. Soon both of you will look forward to the time together. Have Fun.

Basic massage techniques include:

   1. Light touches in a circular motion. The basis of a technique called Tellington Touch or T Touch.

   2. Slow strokes down the dog’s body head to tail down shoulder to front foot and hip to back foot. Acupressure pressing straight down with your thumb deeper massage kneading the muscles and finally friction fast invigorating strokes using the first two or three fingers. As a general starting technique for a full massage for your dog we will use a system described in Dr. Michael W. Fox’s “The Healing Touch”. This is a good basic massage routine.

The general massage routine

In preparing to massage your dog, close your eyes for a few moments and breathe deeply and slowly to relax and energize yourself. Raise, lower and shake your shoulders, arms and hands—then rub your hands together to get the circulation flowing. Or develop your way of relaxing and energizing yourself. Pick a quiet place in your home and even play some relaxing background music. Relax your dog by stroking with both hands from the back of the head to the base of the tail. Always make the strokes in line with the lie of the fur along the back. You may wish to talk quietly to your dog or have some relaxing music playing. This can help you develop a rhythm and more importantly will act as a sound barrier and mask extraneous noises. The first set of massages will be along the spine. Locate the spine with your fingers and then feel the large band-like muscle on either side of it. With fingertips, begin massaging by making small circular movements on each side of the spine—first clockwise then counter clockwise. Start up near the shoulders and work your way down to the base of the tail. Make slow circular movements without lifting your hands. Repeat this a few times. Next working on the same muscle apply gentle pressure with your thumbs—one on each side. The pressure should be vertical through the dog towards their feet. Start at the neck and work down towards the tail lifting and pressing at one inch increments. The third massage for the back is to lift the excess skin up and roll or knead it between your thumbs and fingers. Start again at the shoulders and work your way down to the base of the tail. Finally massage the rump area around the base of the tail using circular finger movements. Do this for about a minute. Now move to the head and neck area. Feel the base of the skull where the head joins the back of the neck. Just like humans there are many muscles in this area and dogs enjoy a deep massage here. Using one hand, place your fingers on one side and your thumb on the other. Massage here for a few minutes. Your dog will really enjoy this. Next slide your hands forward toward your dog’s nose and feel the muscle above the jawline and on either side of the face. These are the cheek muscles. Massage here for a few minutes. Last, with your hands flat begin stroking your dog’s head from their nose to the top of their head following the lie of the fur just like you would normally pet your dog. Do this about twelve times. To massage the ears, take hold of them at the base then gently pull from base to tip rubbing the ear flaps between your fingers as you go. The last area will be the legs. With your dog lying on its side, begin at the shoulder. Massage the muscles of the shoulder with deep slow circular movements using your fingers and hands. Next, gently massage the forelegs between your fingers and thumb working your way towards the feet. Squeeze between your fingers and thumb the many muscles that lie along and between the toes. Also, hold each toe and move it up and down with a gentle vibratory movement. Then hold the paw and gently flex. Extend inward and rotate it to help relax the tendons around the wrist. Your dog may not be comfortable with this at first. Just do as much as they seem to enjoy and try for more next time. Next, move to the thigh. These muscles can take deep massage using both hands. Flex and extend the leg occasionally while working on these muscles. You should be able to feel a clear strong pulse while pressing with your fingers against the femur on the inside of the thigh. This is the femoral artery which is most often used to take an animal’s pulse. Locate the hip joint by flexing and extending the hind leg and with your fingers massage in a circular pattern around the hip region. As with the foreleg massage down the leg to the foot and massage the paw. Then turn your dog over and massage the legs on the other side. Finish the massage treatment with slow palm and finger strokes from the head down the back to the tip of the tail. Then, from the hip to the hind foot and shoulders to forepaw, talking to your dog in a gentle tone for about thirty seconds. There’s no need to turn your dog over to repeat these finishing strokes on the other side. We would like to conclude with words directly from Dr. Michael Fox.

The Massage Ritual

Time and patience are needed to get your pet used to the idea of being gently massaged. If you start off with kittens and puppies a few minutes every day combine with a little play and a little petting you will habituate the animal at an early age to the routine. By the time a dog or cat is six months old you should be able to give a good ten to twenty minute session. Take this same approach with adult cats and dogs. Patience, a little more deep contact and less reassuring petting each day. The equation is total trust for total massage. Talk to your pet in a quiet reassuring voice. Okay, time for relaxation. Let’s see how your back is doing. Aw yes. Nice relaxed muscles. Meanwhile you are working with your fingers first lightly stroking then going deeper but lightening the pressure the second your pet tenses. Praise the animal for relaxing, and eventually you will feel your energies flowing together. It’s almost like playing a harp or other musical instrument. Just don’t pull the strings or press the keys too hard. Choose a regular time and place for the massage. Ideally not soon after the animal has been fed or just before it expects to be fed or taken out for a walk. Take the phone off the hook and put on some quiet music which will help keep out extraneous sounds and will also condition your pet to relax. And finally, don’t give up. Some cats and dogs never seem to accept massage because of their temperament, some past trauma or past rearing history. Keep on trying because you may suddenly win your pet’s trust. One of my cats was quite averse to any form of sustained physical contact, but after several months we worked things out. On a number of occasions when he was ill he actually solicited being massaged—a quite clear sign that when an animal’s trust is won miracles can be accomplished.