You may not know that Union Lake Veterinary Hospital offers a range of not only conventional veterinary medicine but Chinese and herbal treatment options as well.  These natural healing methods or ‘modalities’ can play a big role in your pet’s health and treatment of a wide range of diseases. 

Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) has been used for thousands of years. Here are things you may not know about it:

There five main branches of TCVM

  1. Chinese herbal medicine. One of our veterinarians, Dr. Hawker, is trained and certified in traditional Chinese herbal medicine for animals. 
  2. Acupressure massage (tui-na). We use this primarily in conjunction with physical rehabilitation. 
  3. Acupuncture. We partner with a nearby acupuncturist to whom we refer.  
  4. Diet/nutrition. We use this in conjunction with herbal medicines for holistic healing. 
  5. Energy exercises (Qi Gong).

Food therapy aims to heal the body by using foods along with or in place of medications. Foods are classified into a Yin and Yang food group and by five tastes. Manipulating your pet’s diet according to their energetic properties can exert effects on its health.

Qi (“chi”) is the energy flow through our bodies via pathways called meridians. Acupuncture seeks to remove blockages in the flow of qi by stimulating specific points in the body.

TCVM can be used alone or in conjunction with more mainstream medicine for a multi-modal treatment approach.

These techniques, including acupuncture, are generally well tolerated by our veterinary patients. Many pets even appear to enjoy them!

Many patients can benefit from these techniques. TCVM can be used to treat or help treat a wide variety of problems including:

  • pain
  • pet behavioral issues
  • skin problems
  • cancer
  • seizures
  • endocrine disturbances
  • and everything in between!

We are happy to offer treatment using most principles of traditional Chinese veterinary medicine in order to heal and maintain your pet with holistic methods. Our goal is finding the best combination of veterinary treatments to help your animal companion feel its best. Please contact us today to learn more about how these techniques might benefit your pets!