Holistic Dog® Episode with Kye Payne for CRA Day 2026
Physio, Pain and Regulation: A Conversation with Kye Payne of Every Step Veterinary Physiotherapy
Episode overview
For Canine Regulation Awareness Day™(14 September). Nina sits down with Kye Payne of Every Step Veterinary Physiotherapy to talk about what actually happens in a physio session, the pain signs guardians most often miss at home, and what's coming up in Kye's own workshop series.
In this episode
- How Kye structures physio sessions around a dog's nervous system, not just the body
- The pain signs that hide in plain sight, from how a dog sits down to how they sleep at night
- Why keeping a dog's normal routine matters before a session, and how scent tools like Pet Remedy fit in
- What's coming in Kye's rolling workshop series, and a shared stance on ball throwers
How physio sessions are structured around the dog
- Sessions run for two hours, forty five minutes longer than average, to allow for breaks and time to talk with the guardian
- Kye works with the guardian first to bring their anxiety down, then moves to the dog, breaking the assessment into small chunks with snacks along the way
- Guardians are asked to keep the dog's normal routine before a session: no skipping medication, meals or walks, since any disruption changes the baseline Kye needs to read
- Pet Remedy is sprayed on Kye rather than the dog; guardians are welcome to spray their own dog beforehand if they're nervous
Signs of pain guardians often miss
- Excessive licking, whether of themselves, their bed or the walls
- Being slow to sit or stand, taking more than a second, repositioning their hips, or sitting onto their bottom rather than folding down
- A change in behaviour when touched in specific spots, displacement onto a toy, or a shift in how clingy they are
- Restless sleep and repositioning at night, and gait changes partway through a walk: an amble, a pace or a waddle that wasn't there before
- Kye recommends the Doggy Time app for logging walks and spotting patterns over time
What's next from Kye
- A rolling series of educational workshops over the coming months, covering the basics, nutrition, harnesses, breed specific concerns and home management with a strong stance against ball throwers, which Kye links to elbow and cruciate issues
Find Kye
Bio
Links
About Nina
Nina Fotara KCAI (WG) is the multi-award-winning Holistic Gundog Specialist™, a trainer and behaviourist at Confident Canine® in Essex. Her work is built on balancing both ends of the lead, working with a dog's nervous system state and the energetics its guardian brings, rather than just the behaviour on the surface, with clients in person and online worldwide. She's also the founder of the Canine Regulation Project™, home of the annual Canine Regulation Day™ on 14 September.
Find Nina
Websites:
Confident Canine® main site: https://confidentcanine.co.uk
Holistic Dog® online platform: https://holisticdog.uk
The Holistic Dog® deck page: https://holisticdog.uk/deck
Canine Regulation Project™ Website: https://canineregulation.org
My social media profiles are as follows:
FB: https://www.facebook.com/confidentcanineuk/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@holisticgundogspecialist
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Theholisticgundogspecialist
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/confidentcanineuk/
Join the Canine Regulation Project™ pledge: www.canineregulation.org
A note on this podcast
This podcast is for general information and isn't a substitute for individual veterinary, behavioural or professional advice for your own dog.
