Emmy-"Emmy went swimming today!!  It was AWESOME!!  Her Angel Ann got her a gift certificate to Joshica's Planet Canine in Elkhart, In .  I am including the link to their web site if you all would like to check out the wonderful folks who are providing Emmy's swim time info@planet-canine.com . Pam, the owner and trainer is very kind and gentle and could not say enough nice things about our girl.  Emmy's spirit amazed her, as it does all of us every day!  Pam thought that Emily did a wonderful job and was quite encouraged by her progress.  Emmy stood in the water for a bit, but it was not long before Pam had her walking and then swimming. Emmy is quite a good swimmer. Pam also had her stretching and gave Emmy a wonderful massage while in the pool. Emmy really enjoyed the underwater massage.  The pool is salt water, so Emmy's little muscles must feel great! You will see photos of a device around Emmy's tummy, helping to keep her back up end when she walked.  It was to help support Emmy while she got her "sea legs" back.  Pam said that she barely had to support Emmy and was amazed at how well she did. Emmy got all dried off with her Princess towels, chilled for a minute or two in her bath robe and then was ready for her blow dry.  She went out to go potty afterwards and actually ran back to the building.  It was amazing to see her, and yes... I cried.  How could I not, watching our little girl blossom right before my eyes?  Thankfully Toni, (our trainer, and one of Emily's Angels) was on hand to take photos while I took video, and to laugh when I cried.  She knew I would.  She did a great job as part of "Emmy's Entourage"  I am very grateful to Pam, the folks at Planet Canine and to Ann for making this happen for our little Emmy.  We have an underwater video and I took a long video as well.  I will have Ron put something together that we can get on the web for you all to see.  Emmy actually slept on the way home!  As you know, Emmy almost never sleeps in the car.  She came home and ate a huge lunch, strutted through the house with her head held high, and is now crashed on one of the dog beds.  She has had a big day!  Pam will call tomorrow to see how Emmy is and then we will determine when her next session is.  I think Emmy really enjoyed it.  I am including a couple of photos and I will send you all a separate invitation to view all of the swim photos on my photo bucket page.

Emmy sends tired saltwater kisses,Dee, Ron, Emmy, and "the pack"

Sue & Larry Sensenbaugh-"Words alone cannot express our gratitude for the water therapy at Planet Canine. Before we began our journey, we did not know how to help our baby Tater. She experienced a horrific accident to her back left leg that she did not use it for two years. We began seeing back alignment issues, no muscle usage in her leg as well as circulation to her entire leg. Basically her leg became a crutch. Now after months of continuous treadmill workouts, swimming, massages and the wonderful care by Pam and Kim, she is building leg muscles, walking on her leg, and actually playing again. Her back is slowly getting back into alignment. Tater is continuing to make great strides in her daily activities. We wouldn't see the results without all the love, care and companionship of Pam, Kim and Rich. We love you all! Thank you for being so committed to Tater.

Regards, Sue, Larry, Tater and Snickers!"

From Terri & Byron West-"Well this place is a Godsend! Our 4 yr. old boxer/sharpei mix, Scoozi had to get ACL surgery last year and wasn't recovering well. She wouldn't put any weight on the leg for fear of
it hurting and it was starting to get atrophied.
Someone told us about Planet Canine so we drove
an hour to see what it was all about. We were
floored by the facility and by Pam and her staff! First Scoozi was a little freaked by the pool (she has only swam in the lake where she could touch the bottom) but after the first swim, she was hooked. She turned back into a puppy! We brought her back about 6 more times and she couldn't wait to get in that water and
see her buddy Pam! Scoozi is doing great now, and has built her muscles back up and now she will even go out in the lake where she can't touch!! (she's a bit of a wimp!) Pam helped her heal physically and mentally! We love this place!
Thanks guys!"

From Candace Riggs-"During a recent Conformation show where my boy, MAX, won Best of Breed, the judge stated that her decision was based a lot on conditioning.  She picked two of the three in the class and said that they both have excellent movement.  She stated that my boy was very well conditioned and had GREAT muscle tone, therefore, he won Best of Breed.  When I got pregnant in 2006, Max and I both put on a little extra weight and we took a break from the conformation ring.  When it was time again to start showing, Max started swimming two - three times a week, and also worked on the treadmill prior to most of his swim sessions.  His fitness program at Joshica's Planet Canine helped him lose the weight and build great muscles.  I am sure he would not have done as well as he did if we didn't stick to Max's fitness program with Pam Mendenhall.  A HUGE thank you to Planet Canine and Pam!!" 

From Tami Sisk-"Tillie is my 3 year old Corgi.  She had cruciate surgery on one rear leg in November and the other rear leg done in December last year.  (2005)In July of this year (2006) she injured her vertebrae in her back.  We started swimming 5 weeks ago and she is doing remarkably better.  She is happy again and is improving every week.  Our goal is to loose weight and strengthen her back.  We are on our way to recovery."

From Mary, Chris, and Kona "Thank you Planet Canine for coming to the aid of our German Shepherd puppy.
Recently during a play session, Kona managed to break one of his nails.  He
broke it completely off. It took us a few minutes to figure out where all the blood was coming from, but once we inspected his front paw we realized the nail
was missing. We found his inch long nail on the floor.
The owners and staff at Planet Canine stopped everything and helped us with Kona. What could have been a very scary situation was one of calmness and
compassion. Kona was treated like a King.  He was given appropriate medical attention and loving care.  After a few minutes he behaved as if nothing had happened.  Kona continues to enjoy his friends at Planet Canine. We are so pleased with the improvements we have seen in our sometimes unruly puppy.  The training he receives via April is excellent.  We highly recommend Joshica's Planet Canine.
 
Thanks Again"