Alternative medicine for pets: holistic remedies make headway into veterinary medicine

Animals, May-June, 1997 by Pamela H. Sacks

Holistic remedies make headway into veterinary medicine

Veterinarian Kim Rotner kneels on a rug in her treatment room at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston and deftly inserts a stainless-steel needle into the top of her patient's grizzled head. Gently reassuring Theo, a 13-year-old female husky, she places 15 more needles along the dog's lower back, hips, and joints. Within minutes, Theo comes to resemble a canine pincushion. Yet neither she nor her master, Jonathan Aaron, is the least bit squeamish as Rotner goes about her work.

There is good reason for the air of confidence that pervades the room. For several months now, Aaron has witnessed what the ancient Chinese healing art of acupuncture can do for Theo. When the dog first visited Rotner, she could barely walk because of pain from arthritis and an inflamed spinal disc that was thought to be putting pressure on her nerves.

This morning, Aaron tells Romer that Theo is much better. "On Sunday she even ran in the park," he reports with a broad grin. What's more, he adds, she seems to respond when her name is called--a startling development because old age had taken away most of her hearing. "That's great!" says Rotner, who then explains that she "did points" for the dog's ears on a recent visit.

Theo is a creature on the cutting edge, one of many furry and feathered animals that appear to be benefiting as a growing number of mainstream veterinarians incorporate holistic approaches into their practices in efforts to shore up immune systems, ease metabolic stress, or relieve chronic pain from arthritis, hip dysplasia, and degenerative diseases of the joints. The treatment strategies, which concentrate on restoring the body's natural balance, are in particular demand for pets nearing the end of their lives and unable to tolerate surgery or additional medication.

Acupuncture, chiropractic manipulation, and homeopathy are the most widely practiced alternative methods, but veterinarians also are trying lesser-known approaches, such as dosing animals with Chinese herbs thought to promote healing; naturopathy, which emphasizes a cleansing of the body through fasting, drinking water, exercise, and massage; and applied kinesiology, a muscle-testing diagnostic technique. Many practitioners, Rotner among them, combine Western medicine--which focuses largely on curing the symptoms of disease--with one or more of the concepts in the holistic cabinet. Acupuncture has been deemed an accepted method of treatment by the American Veterinary Medical Association since 1988, while the chiropractic annroach has been given preliminary approval by the group for three years as its effectiveness is studied. Veterinarians can be trained and certified in these methods through courses offered by the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society, the American Veterinary Chiropractic Society, and the Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy.

Another reflection of the spiraling interest in such approaches for animals, ranging from birds to horses, is the rapid growth of the American Holistic Veterinary Association. Founded in 1982, the organization's membership includes 650 U.S. veterinarians and 100 more abroad. At its headquarters in Bel Air, Maryland, the phone rings up to 30 times a day as staffers try to help pet owners seeking information or requesting referrals to veterinarians.

Rotner has spent each Friday for the past three years at Angell, the renowned hospital owned by the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals/American Humane Education Society, practicing acupuncture on dogs and cats that have been referred to her by staff veterinarians. The method taps into certain points along the body's fundamental energy fields--or meridians, to use the terminology of the trade--releasing biochemicals that block pain, swelling, and inflammation of muscles and bones. The "acupoints" are near free nerve endings, which helps the needles achieve a far-reaching effect in an animal's body. Orthopedic surgeon Paul Gambardella, Angell's chief of staff, believes the treatment often relieves pain and has no negative side effects.

Jane Harrison brought her 19-year-old cat, Marcel, to Rotner in hopes of reducing the stiffness in his hind limbs. Marcel was taking prednisone for inflammatory bowel disease and a medication to boost his thyroid; to halt renal failure, Harrison was injecting the feline with fluids prescribed by his primary veterinarian. After Marcel started acupuncture, his appetite improved, his kidney condition stabilized, and some of his old spunk returned. "I think, overall, he's much better," Harrison says. "He's started acting mischievous again, and his ability to get around has improved a lot."

Similar stories are not hard to come by, at Angell and elsewhere.

Like Theo, Frankie is 13--a ripe age for a German shepherd. By 1995, pain from arthritis and hip dysplasia made it nearly impossible for her to lie down and get up. Her owner, Nancy Young, was willing to do anything to make the dog's life more enjoyable, and she jumped at the chance to try acupuncture when it was suggested. These days, when Young throws a ball, Frankie trots after it. After the game, she looks forward to a walk around the block.