When I first brought my dog Cole in to the Care Rehab facility, it was something of a hail Mary pass for us. Cole is a 13-year old lab/pit mix who has been an active dog his whole life, hiking or going to the dog park almost daily. Having previously recovered from both a cruciate tear as well as a serious spinal surgery for disc compression in both his neck and his lower back, time was finally beginning to take its toll.

Cole began to slow down, started dragging his hind legs, knuckling, and eventually limping in the front as well. It was painful for him to lie down and get up. He started slipping on hard surfaces, likewise, stairs and furniture were now an unstable task. I began to have the serious conversations with his vet, but I could tell that it still wasn’t his time… he was still alert, playful, hungry and couldn’t understand why his body was failing him or why we were tapering back his routine. We went through multiple dog shoes, socks, quite a few bad nights. Then I remembered someone had once mentioned CARE Rehab to me and scheduled an appointment in hopes that anything could be done to alleviate his worsening pain. As it turned out, it was quite a bit. After an initial meeting Dr. Jessica Waldman, we changed his diet, medication, and scheduled acupuncture, massage, laser therapy, and water therapy, and have been on this new course now for about a month… and the results have been better than I could have hoped for. The staff at CARE have all been warm and loving towards Cole (and me!), easing him into this situation, calming fears, eager to give treats and pets.

While his physicality is often still a bit of a rollercoaster ride, I can assure anyone that having these experts around to help when things get bad is extremely reassuring. We have now had a halfway point evaluation, and he is doing 50% better than he was when I first brought him in. I am so encouraged by these results and can’t wait to see where we’re at in another month. I am positive that by bringing him here I’ve not only alleviated much of his pain but also extended his life.

Thank you to everyone who has been so helpful, loving and knowledgeable. CARE is truly a lifesaver!

A. Kelly and Cole, Nov 2011