CJ: Do you tend to use the Assisi Loop for the same kinds of conditions that require Chiropractic care, or different ones?
Dr. Faherty: I had a couple of elderly golden retrievers today who have some arthritis in their lumbro-sacral junction. They’re not pushing as hard from behind, they’re pulling more – the typical old dog thing. If they lay around too long if they overdo it, they get down, and it takes them a little more to get up, they don’t like to jump anymore. Basically the dog shifts their weight forward so it pulls more than it pushes, instead of the other way around. When that happens pectoralis muscle and shoulder muscles, get really strong, so the dog doesn’t have to put weight on its hind end and those muscles get weaker.
It’s kind of a progression. For a lot of these dogs adjustments help, but the adjustment I might do once a month. It’s the in-between times where PEMF helps the most, instead of having to take Rimadyl or Deramaxx or Tramadol, (pain killers) when the dog overdoes it. It’s a little bit of giving and take in terms of people asking- how much does this thing do? I tell them to do it in the times you know your dogs already really sore.
How many of your patients who have joint or ligament deterioration do you recommend the Loop for?
Dr. Faherty: I recommend the Assisi Loop for seventy to seventy-five percent of the patients I’m already seeing for chiropractic – especially dogs middle age and older. I mention it as one of the things that are more useful in an older dog than a younger one (who has less chance of arthritis and heals quicker). It’s a great tool to have available. If I’m going to an agility trial- I’ll take a couple of Loops. Dogs have to be able to recover from micro-injuries or a fall where they’ve tweaked something.
Would it be good for show dogs?
Dr. Faherty: The challenge with show dogs is we tend to have them always walk on just one side, causing their neck to torque to just one way all the time, and they end up with some chiropractic issues. The Loop can be part of that treatment as well. I don’t treat a lot of show dogs but it’s also good for agility dogs, obedience dogs, athletes, and fly-ball dogs. All those stop-start quick activities can cause micro-injuries. Where it works with an athlete is where they recover more quickly from micro-traumas.
How much should owners use it for an aging dog?
Dr. Faherty: Use it when your dog is already really stiff. It doesn’t replace chiropractic, because we don’t typically use it in the office with chiropractic, we prefer to send it home with the patients.
Do you think people feel PEMF therapy is affordable for their pets?
Dr Faherty: Initially I think people are put off by the cost. A lot of people don’t see the price comparison. Rimadyl (pain medication) is cheap, but the Loop is more effective or at least as effective as NSAIDS. When I explain it to people I say, this is a tool you use at home. You can also use Rimadyl. It’s not that non-steroidals (anti-inflammatories) don’t work, they do work, and if you have to take one once in a while it’s fine. But if you’ve got to do this on a regular basis then you’ve got to balance the side effects of (NSAID’s) and the effects on the liver, especially if an older dog is using medication. Then you are going to want to do blood tests to see its not damaging organs, and the costs can add up.
The Loop is as effective or more effective than non-steroidals, and even though the Loop only works for so many hours, it’s a bunch of treatments rolled into one. So it depends on people’s budgets and what else they’re doing. I suspect there will be more and more people using PEMF as time goes on because it’s a really good tool.
How would you compare the Loop to an underwater treadmill and laser treatment?
Dr Faherty: Laser is more costly, and people can’t use it at home. Treatments tend to be two or three times a week. The Loop is a lot easier to use and you can use it at home. It works really well for increasing healing and reducing micro-inflammation.