Emergency Animal Hospital | Veterinary Neurology | Holistic Medicine | Veterinary Ultrasound

Holistic Medicine / Complementary Alternative Medicine: We Offer a Range of Care Options at Our Animal Hospital

At Veterinary Care Specialists, we‘re committed to holistic medicine. This simply means that, when we assess a patient and provide medical care at our animal hospital, we consider the patient’s social, emotional, and spiritual needs, along with his or her physical needs. At Veterinary Care Specialists, our clinicians are interested in each animal’s genetics, nutrition, social relationships, hygiene, and stress factors, in addition to assessing the animal’s physical status. When our medical team develops a treatment plan, we think in terms of the animal’s total lifestyle.

At Veterinary Care Specialists, because we think holistically about each animal we see, we like to address each animal’s medical needs using integrative medicine, through which we can provide alternative treatment options to pets and their owners that complement and support the aims of more conventional, Western-type medicine. Integrative medicine, also called holistic alternative medicine, is not just for humans anymore. Increasingly, animal owners are seeking out unconventional therapies in addition to the more traditional ones, to give their pets a more complete range of treatment options to cope with injuries or disease processes.

On the integrative medicine service at Veterinary Care Specialists, we use a team approach, with multiple clinicians meeting and assessing the patient’s health care needs in a thoughtful, organized manner. Our clinical team then applies unconventional therapeutic options that complement the standard veterinary medicine being provided either in our own veterinary clinic or by the referring veterinarian.

We strongly encourage referring veterinarians to consider working with our integrative medicine team at Veterinary Care Specialists. We can evaluate patients and develop treatment plans that will complement the continued care of the patient at the referring veterinarian’s office.

• Veterinary acupuncture. One of the alternative veterinary medicine therapies available at Veterinary Care Specialists is acupuncture. Veterinary acupuncture can be used as a technique for bolstering your pet’s immune system and relieving pain. In veterinary acupuncture, the acupuncturist stimulates specific points located on the animal’s body, selected in accordance with the problems the animal is experiencing. These body locations contain nerve bundles, blood vessels, and mast cells, all of which are important in releasing endorphins and other chemicals into the animal’s body. The chemicals released, in turn, block pain pathways and awaken other cells in the body’s immune system, encouraging a more robust defense from disease-causing organisms. Veterinary acupuncture is an effective alternative veterinary medicine treatment that complements the more traditional medical care offered at Veterinary Care Specialists. Veterinary acupuncture helps regulate your pet’s bodily processes, bolster immunity, relieve pain, stimulate nerve regeneration, reduce muscle spasms, and increase circulation. Most often, you will start to see results right away: When the acupuncturist begins working, your pet will begin to experience relief and relaxation immediately. At Veterinary Care Specialists, our acupuncturist is a licensed veterinarian who has completed advanced courses in equine and small animal acupuncture.
  
  
• Reiki therapy. Reiki heals on all levels—mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual. Though Reiki has been used primarily on humans, to facilitate healing in conjunction with western medicine, animals can benefit from Reiki, as well. Animal Reiki aims to remove anything blocking the flow of life energy in a gentle and effective way, allowing the life force energy to flow freely, so the body can heal. As a healing system, Reiki is simple, noninvasive, stress free, and highly effective. The Reiki practitioner channels the life force energy through the placement of hands on the animal’s body. Reiki can expedite the healing process after your pet has experienced a traumatic injury or undergone surgical procedures. A Reiki session can offer your pet relief from debilitating diseases. It can also have a calming effect on a high-strung and hyperactive animal. Reiki for animals can relieve the stresses your pet experiences at home or in the hospital environment. When your pet is a patient at Veterinary Care Specialists, the initial Reiki session is available at no charge. Once you see the benefits that Reiki offers your pet, you can choose to adopt it as a ongoing care option that can be used to complement the traditional veterinary care.

  At Veterinary Care Specialists, our Reiki practitioners are licensed and registered in veterinary technology and are members of the International Association of Reiki Practitioners.

When you bring your pet to Veterinary Care Specialists, we will discuss with you the integrative care treatments we think your pet may benefit from. We’re pleased and proud to be able to offer these holistic medicine care options to you and to our referring veterinarians. In our experience as veterinary medicine specialists, we’ve seen these treatments work. We include them in our specialty services so you can have the broadest possible array of care options to choose from, to help your pet recover and return to health.

Integrative Medicine

Reiki • Acupuncture