Underwater treadmill and pool therapy: not just “swimming for fun”

When people hear the term hydrotherapy for dogs, many imagine a happy pet splashing around in water for recreation. While dogs may indeed enjoy being in the pool, therapeutic aquatic rehabilitation is far from casual swimming. In clinical settings, underwater treadmill and pool therapy are science-based medical tools, carefully designed to restore movement, reduce pain, and rebuild strength.

“Hydrotherapy isn’t about letting a dog swim until they’re tired,” explains Dr Bernadette Bryan Frankson, physical therapist and Jamaica’s only certified canine rehabilitation therapist. “It’s about controlling movement in a way that promotes healing, corrects faulty patterns, and supports recovery when land-based exercise is too painful or unsafe,” she said.

The key difference between recreational swimming and rehabilitation lies in purpose and control. When dogs swim for fun, they determine the pace, posture, direction, and duration. While enjoyable, this lack of structure can place unnecessary strain on healing tissues or reinforce poor movement habits.

In therapeutic aquatic sessions, however, a trained professional carefully “doses” the exercise, much like prescribing medication. This includes:

• How long the dog works

• How hard the dog works

• How often rest breaks occur

• How efficiently the dog is moving

“It’s similar to how human rehabilitation carefully progresses strengthening exercises. Every detail is intentional,” Dr Frankson said.

Water changes how the body moves and responds, making it uniquely effective for rehabilitation. Buoyancy reduces the dog’s effective body weight, decreasing stress on painful or healing joints and allowing movement with less discomfort.

Resistance from water strengthens muscles in all directions without the high impact of land exercise. Hydrostatic pressure, the gentle compression of water, supports circulation, helps manage swelling, and improves limb awareness, particularly helpful in neurological cases.

Warm water, when used appropriately, can reduce stiffness and ease muscle tension.

“These properties allow dogs to move earlier in recovery than they safely could on land,” Dr Frankson said.

Although often grouped together, underwater treadmill therapy (UWTM) and pool therapy serve different clinical purposes. The underwater treadmill is frequently the starting point in rehabilitation. It allows precise control of:

• Water height (to gradually increase weight-bearing)

• Speed (to influence stride length and endurance)

• Gait pattern (to assess symmetry, posture, and coordination)

“The treadmill lets us retrain walking in a consistent, repeatable way. Because the environment stays the same, we can clearly measure progress from one session to the next,” Dr Frankson said.

Pool therapy, on the other hand, is often introduced later in recovery. It supports:

• Whole-body conditioning

• Cardiovascular fitness

• Core strengthening

• Confidence building

However, because swimming allows more freedom of movement, it requires careful supervision to prevent compensation patterns such as drifting, uneven paddling, or overuse of stronger limbs.

Aquatic therapy can benefit dogs recovering from:

• Hip or knee surgery (including cruciate ligament repair)

• Arthritis and chronic joint disease

• Muscle weakness after prolonged rest or injury

• Certain neurological conditions affecting balance and coordination

Each session begins with assessment and safety checks, followed by a structured plan of work intervals and rest. “The goal is never exhaustion. It’s controlled progress,” Dr Frankson said.

While it is perfectly fine if dogs enjoy their hydrotherapy sessions, fun is simply a bonus. Therapeutic aquatic rehabilitation is a measured, medical approach to restoring comfort and mobility, one controlled step, or paw, at a time.

“Water allows us to help dogs feel better, move better, and ultimately live better,” Dr Frankson said.

keisha.hill@gleanerjm.com