[Dailydrool] about basset/dog massage

[Marilyn Bickell]

>>> From: Taylor family <jklmtaylor at verizon.net>
My BROOD senior Janee has arthritis in 3 legs ... I"m wondering has anyone
tried massage for an arthritic basset?...<<<

Lisa,
I've been giving my dogs massages, 3 days/week, for about 10 years, but
mostly to look for unseen lumps. Bess, who has Degenerative Disc Disease,
LOVES her massages. But when I do hers I go just both sides of her spine and
don't touch any areas where the DDD is located (L-4 & 5). When I massage
her, she automatically stretches herself full length, loving it. But
honestly, I'm much more careful when giving Bess a massage, because of any
pain she might have from the DDD, than when I'm giving Rosey or Beaver their
massages. Rosey and Beaver get deep massages. Bess does not.
When it's massage day, Beaver knows exactly what's happening and he lines up
and waits his turn. Rosey, in true form, just leaps around all of us, like a
toad on steroids, wondering what the heck is going on *sigh.*
There are so many fabulous benefits about massages, like eliminating toxins
and stress, helping to boost the immune system, relaxing stiff joints, etc.,
and when I used to do agility with Miko I would massage her at night, after
a competition or practice, to eliminate any soreness. 
Good luck with massaging Janee; it's a wonderful thing you're doing for her!

Marilyn, Miko (Chasing lizards in Heaven), Bess, RoseyMae, and Beaver
Cleavear, 
Fort Bragg, CA 
"You have gone ahead and nothing is the same, leaving paw prints on my heart
that will always remain."- Tibetan Proverb from Prayers on the Wind.