Alternative treatment options can be particularly beneficial for managing your senior pet’s health problems. Holistic and alternative medicines like acupuncture complement traditional Western medicine for pets and can help support pharmaceutical treatments or act in place of medications. Because senior pets often have organ diseases, such as liver or kidney disease, their bodies can be slow to metabolize medications as well as their healthy counterparts. For example, using non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) for pain relief in a pet suffering from kidney disease and osteoarthritis may not be safe, or a pet may be unable to take certain medications because of a poorly functioning liver.
No matter the cause behind your senior pet’s inability to handle pharmaceutical treatment, alternative therapies are excellent treatment options on their own, or as part of a multimodal treatment plan. Acupuncture is often used to treat dogs with arthritis and joint inflammation. For example, dogs with hip dysplasia or degenerative joint disease are good candidates for acupuncture. Dogs with chronic back pain and even dogs with serious spinal cord conditions also benefit from acupuncture. Lick granulomas are lesions on the legs of dogs that continuously lick a spot causing an irritated sore, exposing superficial nerve endings. These lesions are often difficult to heal and acupuncture may be a good complement to other therapies.
It should be noted that although acupuncture can reduce pain and inflammation associated with many medical conditions, traditional medicine is the first line of treatment for infection, cancer, and major organ disease. However, some issues associated with cancer, or the side effects of cancer treatment (chemotherapy and radiation) such as tissue inflammation, nausea, and decreased appetite, can be helped using acupuncture. Veterinary acupuncturists have treated patients with metabolic diseases associated with impaired organ function. Dogs with diabetes, kidney or liver failure, pancreatitis, Cushing’s disease, and Addison’s disease may experience a decrease in nausea and an increase in appetite after acupuncture sessions. If acupuncture or acupressure cannot cure a dog’s condition, they may make it more tolerable.
During an acupuncture session for your senior pet, hair-thin needles are inserted into specific points on the body, known as acupressure points. These points are often located where bundles of nerves and blood vessels meet and, when stimulated, encourage the nervous system to release natural pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory substances. Even though dogs may be a little nervous in a new clinical setting, most become very relaxed after needle insertion. Depending on the conditions addressed, the actual session may last 20-30 minutes. The doctor outlines a treatment protocol that may involve one to three sessions per week for several weeks. Often, the number of sessions is tapered off as the dog improves, so visits are scheduled less frequently. While highly effective for battling arthritis and other painful, inflammatory conditions, acupuncture can also aid in alleviating anxiety, gastrointestinal issues, skin problems, and degenerative conditions. Acupuncture is based on the belief that the therapy relieves stagnation and promotes total-body wellness by restoring balance, and is highly likely to help your senior pet’s medical condition.
You don’t need to wait until your pet develops an age-related disease before introducing acupuncture into his healthcare regime. Proactively using acupuncture as your dog gets older, even if he’s still in good health, can help prevent or prolong the development of problems. If you are looking for veterinary acupuncture here in the Chittenden County area there are several specialists including Dr. Colleen Flaherty and the staff at Qi Veterinary. If you are looking for hospice care you can reach our office at (802)871-2329.