Episode Transcript
[00:00:02] Speaker A: Welcome to the Muddy Paws Insurance Podcast. I'm your host, Dawn Cross, and today I'll be chatting about discovering dog hydrotherapy with founder of Poseidon, James Hill.
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So, welcome to the podcast. If you could first off, introduce yourself and what you get up to at your business.
[00:00:26] Speaker B: Nice to meet you, Dawn. So I'm the founder of Pawsidon Canine Rehabilitation Centre.
We're a holistic centre based down in Poole, which is in Dorset, where our mission would be to alleviate suffering and pain for dogs that have had surgery, pre and post surgery. And we also look at the behavioral side of dogs as well, which is a really unique environment to work in, if I'm honest. Really, really enjoy doing.
[00:00:57] Speaker A: Sounds absolutely amazing. So how did it all come to be? Is it something you've always wanted to work towards or is it something you thought actually, there's a space that needs to be filled here?
[00:01:08] Speaker B: It's. It's a long story.
A very adventurous story, should I say. So my background was military, so I was a military dog handler.
Served for 14 years within the Royal Marines and the Special Boat Service.
And due to battlefield injuries with my dog, I had to retire from the military, so they call it a medical discharge.
So I spent a lot of time in rehab in a hydrotherapy pool due to the injuries that I sustained. So that was both orthopaedic and neurological injuries to my legs. So the only thing I could do from a wheelchair was swim, which we really enjoyed. And when I left the military then I kind of had to look for, obviously, a new career. And working with Doug's just seemed like a really good fit. So I spoke to the boss, the wife, to say, look, you know, can we. What, you think hydrotherapy started with a good friend?
Yeah. And then Poseidon was born through this. So we used our military background and our rehab journeys to kind of forge Poseidon.
And, yeah, it's been going now for over five years.
[00:02:26] Speaker A: That sounds amazing. I like how you've almost kind of made that connection. It's like, you know, you've really benefited from hydrotherapies. Like, actually, you know what? Pets could also probably really benefit from this if they've had kind of similar injuries. It's not as easy just to do normal physio. And water helps kind of just ease it, doesn't it?
[00:02:44] Speaker B: Oh, absolutely. And John, I'm not. I'm not a dog whisperer, by all means, but I think especially with behavior, one of our jobs is to kind of relax clients when they come in and when they understand, maybe my background and my history through rehab, I'm able to explain certain things that I've been through, just like humans and. And it kind of reinforces that we're in good hands. And that's one.
The staff that we have know what they're talking about, but it's just having that relationship. And when you see them relax, it kind of does feed onto the animals.
So they kind of trust in us and the animals trust in them. And it's just like this cycle. So, yeah, the history is really important of Poseidon and we can just bring that day in, day out to the dogs that come in and see us.
[00:03:31] Speaker A: That's amazing. So, obviously, you know, talking about kind of hydrotherapy and everything else, obviously not everyone's gonna really understand, like, how it actually works, unless maybe they've experienced it themselves. Like, you.
Could you explain a bit more about how. How literally hydrotherapy can help dogs, especially if they have any injuries?
[00:03:49] Speaker B: Yeah. So hydrotherapy is we use the water, the properties of water, to pretty much make them weightless, so they're able to move their joints in a normal way without having to put weight through injured limbs.
So we do this whether it's orthopedic injuries they have or neurological injuries. It can even be for weight loss. So cardiovascular, we use a swimming pool and a treadmill.
So even if the dog has autophobia, we've had great success converting these dogs, believe it or not, into swimming.
Because we live by the sea. Sea safety is something else we do. So it's really important that we teach owners good practices on the beach through sea safety, but also giving the dogs confidence within the water just because of the benefits that comes from it. So there's so many different conditions that we can treat, but the services that we do provide, and that you'll see maybe in many centers within the uk, are physiotherapy, laser therapy, home exercise plans that owners can take home. We have a stance analyzer, like four weighing scales, kind of. It's a bit more fancier than that and it actually gives you a percentage of where the dog is putting the weight, which is really great because dogs are so majestic, they can really hide pain better than humans. I mean, some of the animals that come into us, I just don't know how they keep functioning due to the pain that they must be in. But they're just unbelievable creatures.
As I said before, the behavioral side, but for me, in all honesty, the behaviour is more talking to the owners and how these behaviours are crept in.
But the hydrotherapy is kind of the heartbeat of what we do in terms of looking after them. And as I say, there's a whole array of conditions, whether it's pre or post, we get a lot of cruciate ligament injuries coming into us.
The biggest one for us, though, has got to be the older dogs that we see.
And I'm not saying that owners don't give up on their dogs, they just feel there's nothing that they can do.
But the energy and the confidence and the better range of movements that we see in older dogs after hydrotherapy is truly amazing.
And I really love seeing the owners faces light up when they can see the benefits. So that, that's. Yeah, that just keeps us, keeps us going really. And the girls at work, we have an amazing team and they absolutely love.
[00:06:28] Speaker A: Must be absolutely satisfying as well, because at the end they are helping them hopefully kind of live a better life by, you know, kind of helping with the healing process.
[00:06:37] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, and it is all about the healing process and a lot of it's down to education.
A lot of people don't realize we exist and that's just because they've probably got fit and healthy dogs. It's not until they'll visit the vets, they need a referral to come to us and once they get referred to us, they're in, you know, we. We kind of manage the case then as. As it goes on. But as I say, once they come in and they stay with us and understand the process.
Yeah, they tend to kind of stay with us.
Can for life then in terms of, you know, looking after their weight management and just their general fitness. We're all about the cure.
No, sorry, we're all about the prevention rather than cure. So if we can get dogs like do a mini mot, which is always. Which is great just because if we can strengthen dogs before injury, it just keeps them away from us and the vets and for a longer period of time, which is counterproductive when it comes to the financial side of things.
But this is the nature of win and that's what we're about, is just trying to give them a better life.
[00:07:47] Speaker A: Of course, definitely. And I think as well, you know, everyone wants their pets to be in the best condition they can be and, you know, they are literally like the furry family members as it was. You know, you want literally the best for them.
[00:08:00] Speaker B: Oh, absolutely.
And it is hard, you know, really, because you see more and more and more now is a lot of these Dogs that come into us, they are the ex. Well, they're always the extended family.
But it's really hard to try and persuade someone to maybe try these exercises or look at this food to try and change their diet. Because it's just like, you know, you telling me how to bring up Alexandra, my daughter, you know, you think, excuse me, this is my daughter. So once they understand, like, you know, we are there for them, then obviously it's just, it's a great journey to be on.
[00:08:40] Speaker A: Definitely. One thing I'd love to ask them, actually. You know, obviously you've seen a range of dogs with a range of conditions over the years.
You know, what are some key indicators that maybe something's up with them? Whether that, like pain wise or they're not necessarily kind of balancing well or putting more weight on other limbs to, to alleviate, like one, for example.
[00:09:01] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean, that's great. We do, we have an array of all kinds of injuries that come through. I mean, the obvious injuries are. And the biggest ones or the majority we see are cruciate ligaments. And that's just because dogs are probably getting older. They're not as strong as they should be or as conditioned as they are.
So owners will throw a ball or have a ball launcher and it bounces, bounces, bounces. And when the dog jumps up and lands, they literally can rupture their cruciate ligament. So we do see a lot of them after surgery.
The sooner we get them in, the better the recovery is. And actually, once they're in with us nice and early, we actually get them out faster.
What can happen if the dog doesn't receive rehabilitation after their surgery? It can take a long period of time to heal.
But I think for me, it's definitely slow movements.
When you see dogs in the morning, not jumping out of bed, sprighting to see you, especially in younger dogs, there might be something up. Behavior changes within the park walks. If they see any dogs approaching them, they almost become guarded. Because if they have hip dysplasia, for example, which is kind of arthritis in the hip joints, they do become very protective. So you'll see them kind of growling and trying to shoot people away and dogs away just to say, look, I'm a bit uncomfortable, can you just stay away, please? And a lot of people kind of misinterpret that as aggression in terms of different behaviors. And they're not too sure why this is happening. I mean, a lot of owners that come through the doors, they are so good at reading their dogs and they can Actually see when dogs are toileting, whether they lift their legs, whether they're hunched right or correctly, there are a few different signs that you can. That you can see some that are more obvious than others. But as I say before, dogs are so stoic. They just kind of seem to march on. And it's the drive as well is one of the things that hides a lot of these injuries. So you go to the park, they'll see all the dogs and they'll see the tennis ball, and the dogs just completely forget about their injuries and they are gone. And then people think, oh, my dog's actually fine. It's not until I rest. They get up, they start limping again, and they're like, okay, now we really need to seek professional help here.
So we love getting people in to almost do an MOT to say, look, your dog is absolutely fine. But I recommend these conditions because your dog's at this age.
And one of the biggest wins, actually, dawn, is weight loss.
Weight loss in a dog is absolutely massive. And I think there's a statistic going around at the minute that 50% of dogs within the UK are overweight.
And I think it's just we just, we overlove our dogs.
You know, it's kind of. And I do say we have to kind of be cruel. Cruel to be kind.
But weight management, especially within older dogs that are prone to kind of having more arthritis than the little ones, is. Is one of the biggest wins you can have with your dog.
[00:12:07] Speaker A: No, definitely. That sounds amazing. So moving on to, like, the fun part of the podcast we asked us of everybody is, have you got a funny memory or something cheeky that's happened whilst working with the dogs that you'd like to share with the audience today.
[00:12:22] Speaker B: Oh, God.
Pawsidon. There's quite a few we've, you know, we've had a few where, you know, the dogs have enjoyed swimming so much that once we've. We've shampooed and showered them, we use chlorine just. It's the same as a kiddies pool, so not harmful whatsoever. So we always shampoo them. After we dry them off, we put their dry coats on. Believe it or not, they're smoking jackets, as some people call them.
Yeah, there's a few dogs that have actually escaped and actually ran and jumped back in the pool fully dressed.
So we've had to do that process all over again.
Yeah, it's incredible. And I love the journeys.
We have dogs that come in and they're very fearful. You've got these strange Individuals trying to take care of them. You've also got this massive pond that smells kind of funny. It doesn't smell dirty.
And to see them open up and gain confidence from a behavior point of view is just unbelievable. To the point where they're actually dragging owners into Poseidon just to get into the swimming pool. So it really is amazing to see.
Yeah. What else?
Yeah, I think that's probably one of the. Apart from me.
No, no, that's probably one of the funniest things. I don't know if it's boring. Yeah. But that's probably what happens.
Yeah.
No, so there's countless. I mean, the girls are probably better at remembering things like that than me, but yeah, the dogs are great.
[00:13:54] Speaker A: Well, thank you so much for coming on. Is there anything else you'd like to add before we wrap up the episode today?
[00:14:01] Speaker B: No, no, honestly, I just think that it's great that you're doing this and raising more awareness for all the industries out there. It's something that we all need and for us, you know, it's just nice to kind of almost be health coaches for dogs in a way.
And it's just spreading the word for everyone because we're all in it for the right reasons and it's just getting these dogs to live a more fulfilled life. So, yeah. Thank you, Dawn.
[00:14:28] Speaker A: Well, thank you so much for coming on today.
[00:14:30] Speaker B: No, no worries. And yeah, thanks again. We'll speak soon.
[00:14:36] Speaker A: Thank you to my guest today, James, for chatting about his amazing hydrotherapy service, Poseidon, and the health benefits to doing water therapy for your dog. If you'd like to know more about their services, please click the link in the description.
I have been your host, Dawn Cross, and make sure to click follow for more episodes.
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