Active owners have active dogs. With summer mostly here, they’re hitting the great outdoors ... and dragging home with muscles taxed from overuse.

People can drop by any street corner for a quick massage by a trained therapist. Dogs have no such luck. And yet demand is up: As many as 40% of pet owners say they would use complementary therapy for their pets, according to a study by Veterinary Information Network and Pet Care Forum, cited in Canine Medical Massage: Techniques and Clinical Applications (AAHA Press).

Demand creates a vacuum; if the pros don’t fill it, the amateurs will. Technicians with a solid background in anatomy can quickly get up to speed, then spend the summer perfecting their technique while filling gaps in your summer schedule with massage appointments.

To get started, see the video above.

You can also learn more from an interview with Narda Robinson, DO, DVM, MS, FAAMA, Director of the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Center for Comparative and Integrative Pain Medicine.