Using laser therapy, veterinarians are able to implement rehabilitation treatment plans to restore mobility, strengthen muscles and joints, and help animals heal faster post-operatively while focusing on reducing pain. Laser therapy may begin prior to surgery, following an injury, or upon referral for a limb deformity. But it is most successful when laser therapy treatments are integrated and coordinated from the beginning, when the initial injury occurs and prior to a surgery being performed. Maintenance laser therapy can be used post rehabilitation to assist continued mobility, strength and fitness

The power of the therapeutic laser matters in terms of the dose delivered, and the time needed to deliver the treatment dose. Power is a unit of time, and is expressed in watts (w) or milliwatts (mw). One watt is one joule of energy delivered per second, and the laser dose is typically expressed as joules/cm2 – the energy delivered over a surface area. The most commonly used therapeutic lasers in veterinary medicine are Class III lasers, which may deliver energy from 1mw to 500mw, and Class IV lasers, which deliver power at greater than 500mw.

A lower watt laser provides less energy delivery to deeper tissues so the time needed to deliver a treatment is longer. A lower power laser is better suited for treating superficial structures because of the limited power density to drive photons into the deeper tissues. A higher watt laser allows the treatment to be delivered over a shorter period and involves administering the laser energy with a sweeping motion over the affected area. This sweeping motion will provide more complete coverage of the treatment area and may cover surrounding areas that could be causing secondary or referred pain. Pulsing of the laser beam may provide less heating of tissues at the surface while allowing for an adequate level of energy to reach the deeper target tissues, but more research is needed to define the optimal approach to a pulsed laser beam.