When you touch a dog with healthy skin and muscles, their skin is loose and glides easily over the underlying muscles. Loose, supple skin is normal for healthy dogs. However, when a dog’s skin feels tight, this can indicate a problem with their fascia.

What is the fascia on a dog?

The dog’s fascia is connective tissue which covers and weaves through the dog’s entire body. It serves important biological functions. The fascia contains blood vessels, nerves and lymphatics and stores fat. The superficial fascia, located beneath the skin, contains cutaneous muscles while the deep fascia covers and connects deeper muscles.

The deep fascia encloses muscles and often acts as the point of attachment for muscle tendons and ligaments. Fascial partitions, called septa separate groups of muscles and form fascial planes. Blood and lymph flow through these fascial planes, so the fascia plays an important role in the dog’s circulatory and immune systems.

What are the main fascial regions in the dog?

Cervical fascia covers the whole neck and extends to the scapular and sternum region. The cervical fascia is thin and can be easily damaged. The deep fascia connects into large muscles such as the omotransverse, sternocephalic and sternohyoid.

Trunk and tail fascia is both superficial and deep. The fascia covers the muscles and bones of the dog’s trunk and abdomen. The internal fascia connects internal body cavities.

Fore limb fascia covers the neck and thorax. It extends deep into the shoulder and front leg. The superficial fascia covers main forelimb muscles like the brachiocephalic, deltoid and brachial tricep. The deep fascia covers the large, strong muscles of the shoulder like the rhomboid, deltoid and brachial tricep.

Hind limb fascia covers the lumbar region and the dog’s back legs. It includes the thoracolumbar, gluteal and crural fascia. In obese dogs, the gluteal fascia is apparent by its stores of fat over the pelvis and base of the tail. The large, powerful muscles of the hind leg such as the femoral biceps are enclosed tightly within the fascia.

What is an adhesion in dogs?

When the fascia is damaged, adhesions can form. An adhesion is when the fascia becomes attached to adjacent structures like muscles. When touching the fascia an adhesions can be felt as a “sticky” and tight area. In the case of the superficial fascia, the dog’s skin will feel tight and not glide over the muscle. An adhesion constrains the fascia’s function. It restricts blood and lymph flow and affects the transmission of nerve signals. Damaged fascia can feel “dry” (from lack of blood flow) and result in pain (from restriction of nerve signals).

Where damaged fascia encloses muscles tightly, it restricts the muscles’ ability to lengthen or contract to its full extent. This compromises the dog’s movement. A dog with problems in the fascia will not move smoothly. They may appear stiff or be reluctant to move in a particular direction. They are likely to experience pain, at the site of the adhesion.

How to treat fascia damage in dogs?

The cause of fascia damage are numerous but may include:

• poor hydration from lack of access to water or poor diet,

• repetitive strains from activities like jumping or intermittent lameness and

• injury like a tear, incision or blow.

Massage and manual therapies are effective ways to treat fascia problems. The dog’s superficial fascia is closely connected with the autonomic nervous system. It is heavily innervated with mechanoreceptors which are responsive to manual pressure. When they are manipulated by touch, the central nervous system initiates changes in tone, vasodilation and viscosity of the fascia and underlying muscle.

Massage techniques which relieve fascia adherences include cross fibre friction, stretching and soft tissue mobilisation.

Specifically, a technique called “skin rolling” addresses adhesions and improves the health of the fascia and skin. This technique draws blood to the dermal layer and the superficial fascia and stimulates the mechanoreceptors of the skin and fascia. It is used to gently release the fascia from the underlying muscles and in so doing it relieves adhesions. Skin rolling also helps maintains good elasticity in the skin and enhances skin and coat quality.

Relieving adhesions and releasing the fascia from the underlying muscles can enhance the dog’s mobility. When the fascia is loose, the muscles it covers are able to fully extend and flex thereby facilitating the dog’s full range of motion. A dog with a healthy fascia will move smoothly with no signs of restriction.

How does your dog’s skin feel? Does it glide over the joints or muscles? Can you pick up the dog’s skin? Let me know what you find by leaving a comment here or on the FullStride Facebook page. Full Stride provides remedial canine massage treatments in Brisbane. For more information please contact me.

I respond to all email enquiries within 24 hours. If you have not received a response from me please check your Bulk Mail folder or give me a call.

Sources:

Evans, Howard and de Lahunta, Alexander 2013, Miller’s anatomy of the dog 4th edition, Elsevier Saunders, St Louis, Missouri, USA

Hourdebaight, Jean-Pierre 2004, Canine Massage: A complete reference manual 2nd edition, Dogwise Publishing, Wenatchee WA, USA

Kainer, Robert A & McCracken, Thomas O 2003, Dog Anatomy: A Coloring Atlas, Telon New Media, Wyoming USA.

Millis, D.L, Levine, D & Taylor R.A (ed) 2004 Canine Rehabilitation and Physical Therapy, Elsevier Inc, Missouri USA

Minasney, B. 2009 “Understanding the process of myofascial unwinding” International Journal of Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork. Vol2, No. 3. Sept 2009

Robertson, Julia 2010, The complete dog massage manual, Veloce Publishing Limited, Dorset UK