Salem, Oregon — A senior dog named Marley has regained her youthful energy thanks to a series of shockwave therapy treatments, allowing her to enjoy long walks and hikes again.
Renewed Mobility for Senior Pups
Shockwave therapy is offering a new lease on life for aging dogs struggling with arthritis, providing months of pain relief with just a few sessions.
- Shockwave therapy uses non-invasive sound waves to stimulate healing in arthritic joints.
- The treatment can provide months of relief, improving a dog’s mobility and quality of life.
- It’s not suitable for all dogs, requiring trust and potentially sedation.
- Donor-funded equipment is making this therapy accessible to more pets.
For owner Susan Caplan, the transformation has been remarkable. Marley, who once struggled to get up in the mornings, now greets her with enthusiastic “zoomies” in the yard. “She’s not stiff in the mornings, she gets up, and she runs around,” Caplan said. “I get home, and she comes out to greet me.”
A: Yes, shockwave therapy has shown significant promise in alleviating pain and improving mobility in dogs with arthritis. By stimulating the body’s natural healing processes, it can provide months of relief and a better quality of life.
Marley’s recovery isn’t solely due to shockwave. Between sessions, she continues with underwater treadmill work, therapeutic laser treatments, balance exercises, and home rehabilitation routines. The combination has provided months of improved quality of life—and continues to do so.
The initial benefits of the shockwave therapy lasted approximately six months before Marley required a second round of treatment. When the second series yielded even greater improvements, veterinarian Flori Bliss knew the therapy was working as intended. “She was saying stuff like, ‘She’s just so energetic. She wants to go on these really long walks. She’s still asking to go on hikes, and just her energy level was amazing,’” Bliss said.
Not a One-Size-Fits-All Solution
Shockwave therapy isn’t appropriate for every dog. The equipment can be loud and uncomfortable, and requires a level of trust between the animal and the practitioner. Sedation may be necessary for some patients. Bliss typically introduces shockwave therapy only after a patient has become comfortable with the rehabilitation process—a process that can take weeks or months.
However, for senior dogs whose owners may not be able to commit to frequent veterinary visits, shockwave therapy offers a practical solution: just three or four treatments can provide months of relief before a follow-up session is needed.
Caplan expressed her gratitude for the donor-funded equipment that made Marley’s treatment possible, allowing her beloved companion to reclaim a life that arthritis had begun to steal. Green Hill Park in Salem, with its paved greenway and gentle slopes, has once again become a regular destination for the pair. The simple pleasures of being outdoors together—watching the geese, encountering other dogs—are possible again.
“The thing that I think has made the most difference as far as what we do in therapy is actually shockwave,” Caplan said. “It was like having a much younger dog back. It was truly, truly incredible.”
Marley herself has embraced her rehabilitation routine, arriving eager for her exercises and accepting Bliss’s treats—though she’s always on the lookout for something even more appealing. “The most ridiculous thing that Marley does is she knows that Flori has plenty of really great treats here, but I also bring her extra treats because she is very particular,” Caplan said. “And so she’ll come in, and she’ll do exercises with Flori and eat her treats, and then she’ll get tired of them, and she will walk over to my bag of treats and just stand there and bark at it until she gets something else to eat.”
“I’m so grateful to Flori,” Caplan said. “She has made such a difference in Marley’s life, and it has just been such a joy to get to come here and hang out with her and know that it really has been such a positive thing.”
