Monday, June 20, 2011

Is Cat Massage Effective?

at 8:31 PM
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Cat massage therapy is a form of animal therapy used all around the world to calm down anxiety in cats and to relieve muscle pain and stress. It uses various types of massage therapies that use soft and gentle strokes that may not threaten the pet during the therapy.

This type of therapy specializes in giving our pet a soothing experience while treating stiff muscle areas that causes muscle pain within the body of our beloved fur ball. The soft strokes cause the nerves to send messages of comfort and enlightenment of the body during the therapy which allows the effect of the treatment to fully take place. Both the cat and its owner benefit from the massage therapy as it acts as a relaxant for them.

Examine your pet prior to the therapy to get an idea of the physical condition. In doing so, you can easily spot abnormalities within the body of the cat such as bumps, lumps, and swelling. This can help you to know if there are potential threats to the life and medical condition of your pet. Avoid massaging those areas or near them as it can aggravate the current condition. Let your veterinarian or a professional cat massage therapist check on those areas to see what might be the problem with your cat.

Cat massage therapy can also be a great bonding time for the cat and the owner as it involves physical contact. Trust and confidence are both gained through constant contact with the animal. This will leave no room for fear or anxiety in the mentality of your pet; instead your cat will become more sociable and friendly with people.

In a firm table, place your cat in a comfortable position by simply touching his or her favorite spot on the body. This will calm down the pet and makes it easy to put in a lying or sitting position. Start the therapy by massaging on the top of the head in a sliding gentle motion. Make sure that you control the pressure you use on your pet as it may frighten and associate pain with the massage therapy. Even with a gentle massage stroke, stiff muscles all over the cat's body are loosened and circulation is improved. Arthritis in cats, stiff joints, adhesions and other types of physical problems are treated with every session of massage therapies in cats.

This type of massage can be easily performed even without proper education and practice as you can start by stimulating the cat in order to help it relax and fall asleep. This way, you are accustoming your pet to stay still during its therapeutic massage. Although the bond between human and cat is twined during kitten hood, adult cats easily adopt to being handled by its owner. Regular sessions of cat massage therapy not only strengthen the bond but also help the cat achieve its best condition both physically and mentally. Make sure that you treat your pet with a massage therapy at least once or twice a week.

I write for TIR Massage Stone about performing hot stone massage therapy and obtaining a proper hot stone massage kit.

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