Saturday, March 28, 2009

Canine Massage Seminar

Today, Slider and I attended a Canine Massage Seminar, by Christina Hardinger, at Austin Dog Alliance. It's been quite a few years since I had gone to a Massage Workshop, so I thought a refresher would be great for us.

Christina Hardinger is a certified canine massage practitioner and a large and small animal acupressure therapist. And works with local rescue groups and trainers, here in Austin. Christina began by discussing the benefits of massage, from pain relief to relieving anxiety and depression.
She then did live demonstrations, breaking down the Relaxation massage step by step: Head & Neck / Shoulders, Front Legs & Ribcage / Back and Hind legs. We then worked on our own dogs, received individual instruction and the oppurtunity to discuss any specific issues our dogs may be having.

Other key topics that Christina covered were:

* Helping your dog relax in stressful situations.
* Learned how essential oils can improve physical and mental health.
* Learned the effects of massage on injury and physical disorders.
* Build an improved immune system using massage.
* Improve relationship between you and your dog.

Christina was very informative, attentive, and the individual instruction we received was great. Slider was very receptive and was putty in my hands by the end of the seminar!

Christina's website is http://www.skillfulpaws.net/

1 comment:

Camden said...

Hi! I just wanted to let you know about a great new book that has just been published: A Dog Lover’s Guide to Canine Massage, by Jody Chiquoine (RN, MSN, FNP, CCRT) and Linda Jackson (Lic.Ac, MacOM, MEd). This is a useful workbook designed for all dog lovers, as well as professionals, and dogs of all ages, sizes, and conditions. It is fully illustrated with photographs and diagrams, and provides a really good, solid foundation in canine massage technique. I tried it on my 9-year-old standard poodle, Crispin, and he loved it--it left him so relaxed.

A Dog Lover’s Guide to Canine Massage is available from its website ( http://www.caninemassagebook.com ), bookstores, pet shops, veterinarians, pet groomers, and directly from the publisher. If you are interested in bulk discounts or consignment orders, please contact Satya House Publications ( http://www.satyahouse.com/index.htm ) for details.