How Many Hours a Day Should My Pet Wear a Dog Knee Brace?

March 31, 2023

When your dog injures themself, like suffering from a CCL tear, a fantastic alternative to surgery is providing dog knee support through a brace. This will put your beloved pet on the path to recovery. That is… if they wear it often enough.

Do they need to wear the brace for knee support for dogs all the time? How long is long enough? Bionic Pets is here to answer all of these questions and more!

Table of Contents

The Benefits of a Dog Knee Brace
How Many Hours a Day Should They Wear It?
When to Wear it
When to Take it Off
Reach Out to Bionic Pets to Learn More

The Benefits of a Dog Knee Brace

When your dog is injured, you can't simply wait for them to get better. That doesn't mean expensive surgery is the only other option, though. Whether or not your dog needs surgery depends on many issues, including their overall health, age, weight, breed, severity of the injury, and more.

Only your vet can determine your dog’s needs. That being said, you'll want to ask your vet if bracing is an option for your dog. A dog knee brace allows natural healing and scar tissue to fully develop. This reduces their pain now, as well as significantly reduces their chance of re-injury.

Knee braces are a great option for providing knee support for small dogs or dogs of any size that have suffered injuries. Additionally, braces also offer knee support for dogs with arthritis since they help relieve pain and prevent injuries.

With the right dog knee brace from Bionic Pets, it is very possible your dog won’t require surgery and their knee will either heal or be manageable. When your furry friend is wearing a dog knee brace that offers dog knee support, they're well on their way to recovery!

How Many Hours a Day Should They Wear It?

As important as the knee support for dogs is to their recovery or long-term management of an injury, they don't need to wear the brace all the time. While the brace is comfortable, it is still a good idea to give your dog "time off" from the dog knee support and stabilization brace to promote good circulation.

The Break-In Period

Before we get started on how much your pet should wear it’s brace it’s important to talk about the break-in period. When dogs first get their knee brace, they requires an adaptation period, called the break-in period, that lasts for two weeks and involves 30 minute increments. The first day, your dog should wear its brace for only 30 minutes. The second day, for 1 hour. The third day, for 1 hour and 30 minutes, and so on.

This break-in period allows the dog's skin to adjust to the device. Putting it on and leaving it on without allowing the skin to adapt to the device, can result in sores much like how people need to break in new shoes.

When to Wear it

Your dog should wear their brace when engaging in activities in which knee support for dogs is vital. The brace can be worn when:

Walks
Playtime
Exercising
Time outside
Time spent in a new environment that isn’t their home
Anytime they’re with other dogs that aren’t in their household

When to Take it Off

Your dog shouldn’t need their dog knee brace in situations when they don’t really require dog knee support. These include:
:

They rest or sleep
They’re in a controlled environment
They’re swimming - (although they CAN wear them while swimming, it’s not really necessary to support their knee)

There is no general rule for how long your dog should wear the brace. It all depends on your dog’s activity level, age, weight, energy, and environment.

Some breeds are more prone to running around and will need additional flexible support. Dogs who zoom around the yard all day will wear it a lot. Other dogs that prefer naps over playtime probably don’t need to wear it as often.

Reach Out to Bionic Pets to Learn More

If you have any additional questions, like whether or not your dog is a good candidate for a knee brace for dog knee support, please reach out to our team. Bionic Pets is always here to help with anything you and your beloved pet need. That is our mission!