Once in a while, we humans love to go for nice massage as it helps to relieve the knots and tension in our body. What is a visit to Thailand or Indonesia if we do not go for the traditional Thai or Javanese massage? One main reason why we love the massage is because of the endorphins that are released from the brains once the nerve cells feel the pressure from the massage. It helps to relieve stress as well as helping to reduce adrenaline.
And when it comes to dogs, do you realize that they simply adore our belly rubs as even when we pet them? Have you encountered petting or belly rubbing the dog till the dog falls asleep? The reason this can happen is because the belly rubs or the petting of the dog has the effect of giving them a massage, and like humans, the massage also helps to release the feel-good endorphins that helps to relax the dog.
Massaging our dogs
As incredulous as it sounds, massaging our dogs can actually be beneficial for it. Here are some of the top reasons why you should give your dog a good massage today.
1. Reduces anxiety and stress
This is perhaps the main reason why you should give your dog a massage right now. You see, dogs can be susceptible to stress or anxiety attacks. If you ever heard your dog howling sadly after you left the house, or if you have heard your dog whining during a thunderstorm, these are signs that the dog is suffering from anxiety attacks, the former being termed a separation anxiety. To better comfort the dog during such attacks, a good massage will help as it can release the said endorphins that helps to sooth the dog’s nerves down.
2. Bonding with your dog
A good massage will also create or nurture the bond that you have with the dog. The dog can associate the exhilarating sensation from the massage to you, and that association helps to strengthen the relationship with you and your furry friend.
3. Improving blood circulation and other functions
One of the main benefits of massage, touted by scientists, is that the action of massaging can help to improve blood circulation in the dog’s body. Massaging your dog can also help to reduce blood pressure as well as helping to aid your dog’s digestion too. If your dog is having digestive issues, try massaging your dog and you might just reap the benefits!
Other than improves blood circulation, it does help to promote a sense of euphoria and hence helping to promote a deeper breathing. As per our teachings in Yoga, a deeper breathing help us to connect better with our body, and this goes the same for dogs as deeper breathing helps the dog to relax its entire body too. This can help to also energize your dogs, especially if you hit the correct spots on the dog’s body.
4. Reduce muscle tension
Massaging your dog after a long or strenuous activity can be beneficial to them to as the massaging helps to reduce muscle tension. Massaging your dog’s muscles can also help to reduce the ache too, hence helping the dog to recover much faster. If your dog has suffered from any injury during the activity, a good massage can also help to surface them in case it has been oblivious to you.
How to massage your dog effectively
Now that we know the benefits of massing your dog, it does not mean that you should straight away do it on your dog, especially if you do not know how to do it in a safe way as it can potentially cause further injury to it. There needs to be a delicate balance between adequate force and excessive force, and you need to know the balance so that your dog can enjoy the full benefits of the massage. With that, here are our top essential steps that you will need to take so that you can massage your dog effectively.
1. Start in a calm and slow motion
Before you start massaging your dog, ensure that it is in a calm mode as it is then that they are receptive to a good massage. If you try to forcefully massage the dog when it is feeling extremely stressed or feeling anxious, it can have an adverse effect on your dog.
This is not intended to be a sensual post, but it is essentially the same. To being with, ensure that you use slow strokes on the dog’s body to get the dog in the mood. Try to start at the belly first, and then proceeding to the other parts of the dog’s body. If you know that the dog does not like to be touched in some places, like the tail, then you should avoid such places too.
2. Start from the neck
Once the dog is in the mood, you should then work on your dog’s neck. Now, instead of using long strokes, you should now be using your fingers to make circular motions with a slight gentle pressure on your dog. Your fingers should work downwards to the dog’s shoulder, using the same circular motion. As you will be using your fingers quite a bit, we will recommend you trim your fingernails lest they cut into your dog.
3. Proceed to the legs
Once you are ready, proceed on to the dog’s legs, starting from the front. Use a slight pressure to slowly move your fingertips in the same circular motion, working on your dog’s ankle and then towards the body. Go up and down each leg for a couple more times before working on the back legs. You can opt to apply additional pressure on the dog’s thighs, especially if you have been working the dog’s thighs out!
4. Work on the back
Here is where the dog could possibly enjoy the most. Stroke your dog’s back with long deep strokes, and, using the same circular motion again, work on the dog’s neck and slowly moving towards the end of the dog’s body. You can opt to use a deeper pressure but take care not to put pressure on the dog’s bone at any point of time.
5. Finishing with the ear rub
Finish the entire massage session with an ear rub. Dogs love it when we use gentle pressure to work on the ears!
Wrapping up
Massaging our dogs should be one of the best ways to relax our dogs. It allows us to bond with our furry pet and at the same time helping to soothe their nerves down. You can massage your dog even when you are watching your favorite show on Netflix! Talking about killing two birds with a stone!