What is Veterinary Physiotherapy?

Veterinary Physiotherapy involves the assessment and treatment of musculoskeletal or neurological conditions in animals. An assessment involves observing the animal's static posture, movement and gait, manual palpation to assess the body's soft tissue structures and assessment of available movement throughout the body. Assessments also require careful consideration of all aspects of the animal's environment, lifestyle, conformation, genetics, anatomy and function. Therefore, veterinary physiotherapists require a good level of knowledge of animal anatomy and what can happen in injury or disease. Similarly, treatment involves a multimodal approach, often involving manual therapy, electrotherapy and remedial exercise in order to reduce pain, restore function and improve performance.