Pampering Your Pet: Dog Massage!

  Posted on September 23, 2010  by Joy of Living  No comments

Jessie, the pampered pooch: Ahhh….nothing feels better than a relaxing massage to ease away the stresses of the day.  Dealing with that darned cat, Bo, in this house can really make my muscles tense.  If I don’t get my weekly massage, I am just a bundle of nerves.

If your pet seems uptight, anxious, or tense, perhaps a good massage, or “doggy-sage,” as my Yorkie-Poo friend, Bolt, likes to call them, is in order.

Although there are certain pet spas that may over massages for dogs by trained canine body workers, that can get pricey!  So, if you want to treat your pet like a prince or princess, here are some instructions on how to massage your pet:

1.) Have your dog lie on a rug or a mat.  Make sure he or she is comfortable.  Or, if you have a smaller dog, place him or her on your lap.  As soon as you can tell your dog is relaxed, begin to gently scratch behind his or her ears and then move around the face, under the chin, and over the head.  Be sure to rub each ear between your thumb and forefinger.  (This is Bolt’s favorite spot!  He literally licks his lips when his human does this to him!)

2.) You can straddle your pet by standing over him or her, but, please, don’t use us as a seat cushion!  Using three fingers, move slowly over the neck and across the shoulders and then down the back, using small, circular motions.

3.)  Softly massage the buttocks area from the thigh down the leg all the way to the paw.  Be sure to massage both the front and back of each leg, top to bottom and bottom to top.

4.) Next, with your thumb and index finger on each side of the spine, move towards the base of the tail, massage each thigh, and then move back up again with soft, slow strokes from the dog’s tail to its head.

5.)  To calm a restless dog, massage its muzzle.  Support your pet’s jaw with one hand while making small circles on the muzzle and jaw.

Don’t worry!  This massage session does not need to be as fussy as the ones you humans may like.  We are not modest.  No towels needed.  We also do not need soft music in the background (although that would be nice!) or scented oils and lotions.  Who knows?  We may even fall asleep under your glorious touch.  One thing you should not expect, however, is a big tip!  We might, however, lick your face and wag our tail over and over as gratitude for a job well done!  Just don’t be surprised if we begin to request this service of you in the future!  Just like you, we get stressed, too, and nothing beats the comfort and relaxation of good, old-fashioned massage! And, no, the kid yanking on the tail does not count!

(Thanks to ehow.com and its article on How to Massage a Dog for this useful information!)