In 2013 – 2014, Safe Work Australia reported that slips, trips and falls comprised 22% of serious workers compensation claims in Australia. The factors that affect slips and falls in humans include the health of the person’s sensory and neuromuscular systems along with environmental factors like the friction that the floor surface provides.

Our animals are no different from us when it comes to floor surface and the incidence of slips and falls. Animal studies on the effect of flooring show that floor surface, texture and finish affects animal comfort and health.
In studies of dairy cattle and pigs, hard and potentially slippery concrete floors have been associated with increased incidence of lameness and increased the risk of injury. These slip and fall accidents are caused from the animal’s inability to adapt to floor conditions to ensure their feet has sufficient friction with the ground to prevent a slip.

In a study of wet and dry floor surfaces, it was shown that dairy cows’ walking speed and stride length on slippery floors was reduced to adapt to the flooring surface and to reduce the risk of slipping and falling. The incidence of slipping and falling greatly increased when the floor was wet and slippery.

Similarly, in a study of pigs, it was demonstrated how the animals adapt their gait on slippery floors to reduce the likelihood of a slip. Gait adaptions include increase in the number 3 feet support phases in the gait when the floor is slippery and decreases in stride length and speed. On non-slip surfaces, studies found that cows’ stride length increased. It concluded that increasing the roughness of the surfaces can improve some aspects of a cow’s locomotion.

These studies also demonstrated that animals (and human’s) requirement for friction against the floor changes depending on our activity type. For instance in the study of dairy cows, greater flooring friction was required when the cow starts walking and when turning a corner or negotiating obstacles.

How do slippery floors affect dogs?

While there are few studies into the effects of flooring on dogs, the findings from other animal studies can be applied. We all know from watching our dogs skidding around corners or watching YouTube videos of dogs slipping on slippery surfaces, that our dogs need sufficient friction under their feet to prevent slips and falls.

Here are some specific ways that asking our dogs to walk on slippery floors can affect them:

1. Gait changes

Like the dairy cow and pig studies, we have seen our dogs adapt their gait when walking on slippery floors. They reduce their stride length and slow their speed. They will often shift their weight forward to reduce the risk of backward slips. Over a prolonged period, these changes in gait overload other muscle groups such as:

• Neck, shoulder and chest muscles due to the dog shifting their weight forward and trying to stabilise the forelimbs to avoid forward and sideway slips.

• The adductor muscles on the inside of the hind limbs to stabilise these limbs to avoid backward and sideway slips.

2. Blows

Similar to the dairy cow study where it was found that animals need more floor friction when turning, so too do our dogs. Without sufficient friction when cornering, our dogs slip and can break bones and tear muscles by hitting walls or furniture at speed.

Tips for preventing injury on slippery floors

1. Reduce time spent of slippery floors

The simplest way to prevent injury on slippery floors is to restrict your dog’s access to them. You can easily cover floors with mats to provide greater friction.

Manage dogs when hard floors are more slippery such as when they are wet or recently polished.

2. Reduce speed

While throwing the ball down the hallway and watching Rover slip and slide may be amusing to watch, it is injuring the dog. Instead train your dog to walk slowly over slippery floors. This will reduce the risk of a fall, although gait changes will still occur

3. Increase friction

When dog’s toenails get long it reduces the floor friction with the dog’s paw. (See blog – http://www.fullstride.com.au/blog/do-i-need-to-trim-my-dogs-nails) Keep your dog’s toenails short so they have maximise friction with the floor.

Mats and non-slip coatings also increase friction of hard floor surfaces.

4. Maintenance massage treatment

A quarterly massage treatment can benefit dogs that live on slippery floors. A treatment can ease muscle tension caused from overloading muscles through gait changes. A treatment can also re-align the dog’s perception of the position of their limbs so that the abnormal gait required to negotiate slippery floors is not habituated and result in additional muscle strain.

For more advice on preventing muscle injury to your dog around the home please contact me at jlconlon@fullstride.com.au. I would love to have a chat about how Full Stride can keep your dogs injury free.

You can also stay up to date by following Full Stride on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/FullStrideCanineMassageTherapy/

Until next time, enjoy your dogs.

Sources:

Cham, R & Redfern, M.S. 2002 “Changes in gait when anticipating slippery floors” Gait and Posture 15:159 – 171
Croney, C.C, Daigle, C.L, Hurt, M & Stella, J.L 2015 “Effects of flooring on animal health and well-being: Implications for kennelled dogs” Purdue Extension (downloaded from https://mdc.itap.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=VA-4-W#.WAUjKuh97t5)

Rushen, J & de Passille, A.M. 2006 “Effects of roughness and compressibility of flooring on cow locomotion” Journal of Dairy Science 89:2965-2972

Von Wachenfelt, H, Pinzke, S & Nilsson, C. 2009 “Gait and force analysis of provoked pig gait on clean and fouled concrete surfaces” Biosystems Engineering, Vol 104. No. 4: 533 – 544

http://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/sites/SWA/about/Publications/Documents/961/Australian-Workers-Compensation-Statistics-2013-14.PDF