Dog Massage Pet Spa

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Sit … good. Good dog. Stay … what a good doggie. Who’s a good puppy? Now let’s just rub those jowls. Oooooo, somebody’s feeling really tense. Good dog, just relax …

If chasing squirrels and napping on the couch is getting to be too much for your pup to handle, then how about a little rest and relaxation courtesy of your local dog massage pet spa?

With new therapists being certified every day, dog massage pet spas are becoming commonplace. In these parlors, well-heeled pets are placed upon the same vinyl-covered massage tables many of us long for after a hard day at the office earning money to buy organic kibble. While you’re working to pay the doggie daycare bill, your pup can be petted and rubbed with soothing herbs for the better part of an hour by a trained professional.

What exactly qualifies as a “trained professional,” however, is open to interpretation. Many dog massage therapists get their credentials from online certification programs. They watch some videos of people petting dogs, take a written test, send in their own video of themselves petting a dog, and pay $400-$1,500 in tuition. And then, Voila! A certificate arrives shortly in the mail. These folks are then free to start getting paid to pet every darn dog in the neighborhood.

Why exactly would people want to pay someone money to pet their dog? For starters, if the pet is injured, the dog massage could be therapeutic, easing joint movement, for example. Some dog massage pet spas make claims such as the rub-downs increase the flow of nutrients to various parts of the body. An online business called Energetic Touch Massage has an unintentionally hilarious promo canine massage video that explains all the therapeutic reasons you should massage your dog (not to be confused with petting your dog), and even offers quality tips such as “never massage a dog who doesn’t know you.” [The video has now been removed.]

These are all good enough reasons to have your dog professionally massaged at a pet spa, but let’s also go ahead and state the obvious: People with money to burn are always looking for another way to pamper their pets. After all, humans get massages, and they’re terrific, so why shouldn’t our pets?

“People recognize the beneficial effects of massage on themselves,” says Dr. Glenda Wexler of Broadway Dog Spa in Hewlett, New York, not too far from NYC. “They often want to extend that same benefit to the animals that they love.”

Dog Massage Pet Spa

Dog massage spa therapists will rub up and down your pet’s various parts for half an hour or for a full hour. Other services (which cost extra) often include the mysteriously named Reiki therapy, which claims to channel your dog’s life force energy. Yes, life force energy. For pudgy pups, your canine spa may even offer a payment option for a diet plan.

Many four-legged travelers (as long as they weigh 25 pounds or less) make a stop at the luxury W New York hotel in New York City’s Union Square. Dogs get plush bath robes, beds that are replicas of the human-sized beds in the room and, best of all, an in-room massage for your pet. The price tag for all of that starts at around $450, or so we hear.

Yikes, $450 is the price for one night in this dog friendly hotel in NYC? Sounds like someone could definitely use a massage right about now.

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