There are many types of pain.  Some are very severe and others more tolerable.   Although we think of pain as bad it is actually the body’s way of letting us know that something is wrong.   It tells us to slow down and protect the damaged area.    Without pain we would not be aware that we were damaged in some way and we would continue doing things that would make the pain worse.    Of course, if the pain is severe using pain killers to make life more tolerable is often necessary.   However simply masking the pain without taking additional steps to help the damaged area heal would be a big mistake.

Pets can develop painful conditions for a number of reasons and what relieves their pain depends to a great extent on what causes it.    Common painful conditions that dogs and cats develop include musculo-skeletal diseases which include injured muscles, tendons, ligaments, cartilage and bone.    Specific problems such as arthritis, a torn cruciate ligament, a torn muscle, a torn menisci, hip dysplasia, a dislocated hip, osteomyelitis  and  osteosarcoma are all diseases causing musculoskeletal pain.   Other painful conditions may originate from the diseases of the nervous system including spinal cord compression from intervertebral disks disease, narrowing of the spinal canal known as vertebral stenosis. and spinal arthritis (vertebral spondylosis) which often compresses spinal nerve roots.    Gastro intestinal pain may result from gas distension, a gastric ulcer, and an intestinal foreign body causing intestinal obstruction.    Urinary tract pain can arise from stones in the kidney or passing down the ureters.   Stones lodged in the pets urethra can cause the bladder to distend and become very painful.    Oral pain can arise from loose teeth, a cavity, a tooth root abscess, or expose dental pulp.   A corneal eye ulcer, a foreign body in the eye or glaucoma can all cause severe eye pain.   To reiterate it is important to keep in mind that pain is a protective mechanism the body uses to tell the pet or person to avoid using the area while healing is occurring.  Consequently masking pain with pain killers although sometimes necessary may encourage the pet to use the limb before proper healing has occurred.

Before pain can be treated it must first be recognized by either the pet’s guardian or the veterinarian.    Because animals can’t tell us where it hurts and when it hurts caretakers and veterinarians must learn to recognize subtle signs of pain.    Sometimes pain is obvious such as when a pet walks stiffly or limps, or screams out when he or she moves in a certain way or is touched at a certain spot.   However, some dogs or cats are more stoic and pain may not be so obvious to the pet’s caretaker.    The less obvious signs of pain include a change in posture,  subtle changes in gait,  a change in ear, tail or head carriage, less activity, a decreased appetite, an increased heart rate, dilated pupils,   excessive panting, a personality change such as a more aggressive or fearful nature.

Once pain has been recognized and hopefully localized, there are many holistic options for reducing pain and making the pet more comfortable.   These options include herbal and nutritional anti-inflammatories like:     Valerian root, Rosemary, Ginger, Celery seed, Phenylalanine, DMSO, MSM, Hops, and Boswellia.  Glucosamine, collagen type 2, Hyaluranic acid, Yucca, and Ultra-InflammX .    Homotoxicology remedies like Trammel, Zeel, Spascupreel and Traumeel are all used to treat painful conditions.   The herbal or homeopathic remedy Arnica has long history of being used for pain management

Other  techniques  which can minimize pain include acupuncture, chiropractic, veterinary orthopedic manipulation (VOM), pulsed magnetic therapy,  Frequency Specific Micro current (FSM), infrasonic therapy, Class 4 Laser therapy,  massage therapy, trigger point therapy, prolo-therapy,   physical therapy,   Rubeolla viral Immune Modulator injection (RVI),  and finally Adequin and Legend injections.

The above therapies for pain can be used alone or in combination.     Keep in mind that what works well for anyone animal may not work as well for another.    Pets are like people and each individual has a unique physiology which determines which remedies or modalities work the best for them.   Consequently, it may take several trials before the best solution is found.

It is important to point out that holistic solutions are commonly not as fast acting as drugs but are much safer.     For most herbs or nutritional remedies pain relief may take as long as 2-3 weeks and consequently the quicker acting drugs may have to use in the initial stages in combination with the slower natural remedies.

Finally, one thing pet caregivers must realize is that it is very important to keep their dog under control during the healing process.    As we reduce the pets pain they want to run after birds, rabbits or squirrel in spite of their discomfort and in doing so commonly reinjure themselves.    Short easy walks can be beneficial but if the dog is pulling hard on the leash the walk may be contra-productive.

Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing
dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, rodents, and reptiles with both conventional and alternative medicine.  Dr. Simon is
certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy.  He is the author  of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and a regular contributor to  Awakenings magazine.

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit  area  including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Washtenaw, and Livingston counties.   Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson,  Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms, Franklin, Farmington, Farmington, Hills, Novi, Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, lymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester,  Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica,  Grosse Pointe
Farms, Grosse Pointe,  Romeo,  Flint, Hartland,  Lansing, Okemos, Flint , Howell,  Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

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Kidney failure is the number one killer of older cats and dogs.    If a dog or cat lives to a ripe old age the likelihood is that degenerative kidney disease will progress to kidney failure and finally take his or her life.    Kidney disease is a slow, progressive process that begins in youth and little by little destroys so many kidney cells that the organ ceases to function properly.   Unfortunately symptoms of kidney damage do not appear until late in the process when at least 70% of the functional kidney is destroyed.   Consequently, a pet owner will have no idea that a serious problem exists until the disease has reached an advanced and critical stage.   Semi annually testing your senior pets urine and blood will detect kidney disease somewhat earlier than waiting for symptoms to appear.    A relatively new urine test known as the ERD (Early Renal Disease) will detect evidence of kidney disease which might be missed by a standard urinalysis.   It is important to not that unlike the liver, when kidney cells die they are not replaced.   That is to say that the liver has regenerative capabilities not found in the kidney.    Consequently, serious damage done to the kidney is permanent.    Each year our pets loose a little more of there kidney function until the critical stage of kidney failure is reached.   Things that can destroy your pets kidneys include:  Bacterial infections, food and environmental toxins, allergic reactions, auto immune disease, trauma, high blood pressure, drugs and any inflammatory reaction in the body.    Once enough damage is done to the kidneys the organ becomes progressively less efficient at removing metabolic toxins from the cat or dogs blood and toxins build up until death occurs.   Symptoms of advanced kidney disease include weight loss, increased drinking and urinating,  and loss of house training.    If any of these symptoms are noticed it is important to make an appointment with your veterinarian and bring in a urine sample for testing.

Traditionally kidney failure is treated with a prescription kidney diet and the administration of subcutaneous (under the skin) fluid therapy to help rehydrate the pet and to flush toxins out of the body and a faster rate.   Fortunately, with alternative medicine and holistic veterinary care,  we have a number of additional options can help to prolong your dog or cats life.    Oral or injectable antioxidant therapy will help neutralize many of the free radicals which are destroying the kidney cells.   Important antioxidants include coenzyme Q10, alpha lipoic acid,  resveratrol and nega hydrate.   The use of Celtic sea salt will help reduce acidity which develops with progressive kidney damage.   Chiropractic care helps support the bodies ability to neurologically control the kidney.   There are very specific acupuncture points which address kidney issues and are very useful at helping with kidney failure.   Systemic enzyme therapy utilizes powerful proteolytic enzymes which once in the kidney reduce inflammation and dissolve scaring which inhibits kidney function.     Pulsed magnetic therapy can help to rehabilitate kidney cell that have been damaged but are functioning poorly.    Pulsed magnetic therapy works  by restoring diminished cellular voltage that is necessary for the cell to perform its many activities.   “Frequency specific microcurrent” is a holistic modality which uses very specific electrical frequencies to slow the progression of kidney damage.  A chinese herbal remedy known as Rehmania has been used in Asia for centuries in the treatment of kidney disease.   Although stem cell therapy for treating kidney disease is not yet a possibility it is exciting to know that scientist are very close to making this a reality for our dogs and cats.

Because the loss of kidney cells from disease is presently permanent any thing you can do through out your pets life to avoid such damage makes so much more sense than trying to treat an already diseased kidney.    Protecting your pet’s kidneys begins with proving your pet a clean and healthy life style.   A superior diet that has a minimal number of chemical toxins that may be present  in the form of preservatives,  artificial coloring agents,  and chemical texturizures.   Other toxins encountered may enter your pets  food accidently or intentionally such what when cows were accidently fed fire retardant chemicals or when the chinese provide food ingredients that contained melamine.   Of course, a superior food not only avoids dangerous toxins it also has a full compliment of nutritional ingredients that are essential for the proper functioning of the liver and immune system.   Such a diet will be much better prepared to fight off invading bacteria and to remove ingested toxins from the blood stream.    Providing fresh, alkalinized water which contains few or no toxins is very important for the health of the  kidneys and the body as a whole.    Unfortunately with the limited space available it is impossible to go into more detail about optimal nutrition.       For a much more in depth discussion on optimal nutrition for dogs and cats you can visit either of my website doc4pets.com or my blog myholisticpetvet.com

Kidney disease is a silent killer that is much better prevented than treated.   Unfortunately,  avoiding damaging substances in our environment, food and water is becoming more and more difficult given the toxic world we and our pets live in.   All we can do is our best to help our pets live a clean and healthy life.

Why is my dog itching, scratching, or chewing at himself? Is one of the most common questions dog and cat owners are asking their
veterinarian.    Just as with humans  there are many reasons why dogs and cats may itch, scratch or chew at themselves.   Keep in mind that itchiness is a symptom and not a disease and that  scratching is almost always the result of itchiness.    The often daunting challenge  the veterinarian is faced with is identifying the cause of the itching and the prevention of the scratching.  There are many causes for itching and scratching.    Included are parasites such as fleas, ticks, and mites.   A bacterial dermatitis known as a “pyoderma” produces pimples that are very irritating .   Allergies result in skin rashes which cause severe itching and scratching and can lead to a  secondary  bacterial or yeast infection.   Autoimmune reactions can cause the skin to become red, raw, and itchy especially at the sites on the body where the skin
turns in ward and becomes the mucous membrane.    Nutritional deficiencies of such things as fatty acids, fat soluble vitamins and zinc can cause dry unhealthy skin which results in a dull, lack luster hair coat and itchy skin.

Some of the above causes of rashes,  itching and scratching are easily diagnosed while  others require a good bit of detective work.   Laboratory test used to diagnose itchy  skin problems include impression smears for yeast and bacteria infections, skin scrapings for mange mite infestations, cultures for bacterial or fungal infections, biopsies for helping identify cancer, hormonal diseases, allergies and auto immune processes.   Special ultra violet lights can discover certain types of fungal diseases.   Other laboratory test involve sending blood to an outside laboratory for measuring hormone levels .    Urine tests are available for detecting elevated cortisol levels that could cause a dog to itch and scratch.

Of course many diseases which cause itching, scratching and rashes can be treated symptomatically without actually knowing the cause of the problem .    However masking symptoms without  also treating the cause will  only be a temporary solution and the problem
will return as soon as the medication is stopped.    There are times  when the itching and scratching is so severe that drugs like corticosteroids must be used, short term,  to break the itch scratch cycle and give the pet relief .   In such cases giving the minimal amount of  a steroid  drug on an every other day dosage schedule helps to minimize the possibility of serious side effects.     Combining steroids with  anti inflammatory remedies like antihistamines and fatty acid supplements will allow for using lower doses of steroids.    The use of “natural hydrocortisone” which comes from the Yam  plant is an excellent alternative to synthetic cortisone such as prednisone or rednisolone.   Natural hydrocortisone is  “bio-identical” and thus produces fewer side effect than its synthetic drug counterparts.    If the itching and scratching is not too  severe then cortisone therapy may be avoided by using a number of other less aggressive approaches.    Frequent bathing with  a gentle herbal shampoo can help to calm the skin and wash off offending allergens.   Crème rinses that contain colloidal oatmeal, moisturizures, and a local skin analgesic like “pramoxine” can be used after a shampoo or all by themselves.     Clipping your pet’s coat short will make bathing and medicating much easier.  Sprays containing aloe and calendula can be applied  to localized rashes.    Licorice root is an herb given by mouth that  stimulates the pets  adrenal gland to produce more cortisone and thus reduce itching and scratching.   Doubling the recommended dose of oral omega fatty acids is recommended during seasonal outbreaks  when itching
is most intense.    Using an antihistamine such as benidryl  may be helpful both for its anti allergic effects and its mild sedative properties.

Regardless of the cause of itching and scratching,  the most important first step is to stop self mutilation  In the initial stages of treating severe chewing and scratching  an elizabethan  restraint collar can be placed around  the animals neck to stop licking but does little to prevent scratching unless the pet is scratching at his or her ears.    You may also want to consider clipping you pets nails short and/ortaping  padded socks over  the  dog or cat’s back feet.    You may be reluctant to use an Elizabethan collar or to pad the feet  but if you do not the self trauma becomes  a vicious cycle that even cortisone therapy won’t stop.

In summary ,  the causes of itching and scratching are numerous and  successful treatment of the problems depends on an accurate diagnosis.    Even after the problem is diagnosed successful therapy may be challenging  and frustrating  especially if the  pet’s caretaker does not thoroughly comply with their veterinarians recommendations .

Are you confused by the difference between the terms holistic medicine, homeopathic medicine , alternative medicine, complementary medicine, integrative medicine, natural medicine, vibrational medicine, energy medicine, herbal medicine,  and botanical medicine.   Well don’t feel alone, many  are .   Therefore let me attempt to help clear things up.

Holistic medicine is an umbrella term that includes such therapies as:  clinical nutrition, acupuncture, chiropractic, homeopathy, homotoxicology, functional medicine, herbal or botanical medicine, prolo therapy,  vibrational or energy medicine, detoxification and more.  Holistic medicine views the body as a whole and not as a bunch of isolated organs or organ systems.   The holistic point of view is that no one system functions on its own .   A disease which may on the surface appear to affect only one  organ system actually affects all systems.     Holistic medicine does not attempt to name  or treat individual diseases but does attempt to identify and correct  abnormal body  functions which may underlie many diseases.     Holistic medicine believes that the major underlying causes of  dysfunction include:  malnutrition,  a leaky gut, an unbalanced immune system, an out of control inflammatory response,  poor detoxification,  a deficiency of antioxidants,  a loss of cellular communication, excessive physical and psychologic stress,   spinal misalignment,  neurotransmitter  imbalance and poor hormonal control.

Vibrational medicine, also known as energy medicine or bio resonance therapy,  is another broad category under holistic medicine.   Vibrational medicine includes soft laser therapy, homeopathy, pulsed magnetic therapy, infrasonic therapy, electro-crystal therapy, frequency specific micro current, color therapy and aroma therapy.    All of these different vibrational modalities utilize different forms of energetic vibrations to either reestablish health using resonance frequencies  or destroy  harmful bacteria or viruses using destructive frequencies.    Vibrational medicine also includes the area of hands on healing      Keep in mind that our most brilliant quantum physicist tell us that our world is not that of particles but of waves and frequencies. There is truly nothing solid about are reality.    We and our pets are in a very real sense  energy beings and given that context disease is really a body that is out of tune. Healing then is simply the retuning of the body to a state of vibrational harmony.

Alternative medicine, complimentary medicine, and integrative medicine are all terms that have all been used in place of holistic medicine.   Of these terms integrative medicine comes the closest to the description I use for holistic medicine because it implies the use of both holistic and traditional medicine together.   In its truest form holistic medicine does not exclude traditional medicine but embraces its judicious use when the situation call for it.

“Homeopathy”  is the term that is most often confused with the term  and used in place of  the term “holistic”.   New pet owners who are looking for a holistic veterinary care all too often request the homeopathic approach.   Understand that homeopathy is a specific type of holistic medicine which uses very dilute homeopathic remedies to heal patient.   On the other hand holistic medicine includes not only homeopathy but also many other holistic approaches like acupuncture and chiropractic.

Frequently vaccinating a dog or cat against multiple  bacterial and viral disease threats can result in a hypersensitive immune system that can lead  to allergies, auto-immune disorders, and  acute vaccine reactions.  For these reasons  it is best to vaccinate your pet against only those diseases that the animal is at high risk of being exposed to.     To further reduce the frequency of vaccination I recommend a yearly blood test that measures your pet’s antibody levels to see if they are at a  protective against Canine Distemper, Parvo, and Panleukopenia and Rhinotracheitis.    If the titers turn out to be low then vaccinating or boostering is indicated.  However, if the titer is within a protective range then no vaccine need be given .   Unfortunately, most municipalities or boarding and grooming facilites will not accept Rabies titers as proof of protection.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

If your dog or cat has a lump or bump anywhere on his or her body it could be early cancer.    A simple physical exam can not determine whether the bump is a malignant tumor, cancer,  or a benign mass.   Commonly given advice by veterinarians is to watch a mass and see if it grows or changes.    Unfortunately,  such advice  may jeopardize the animal’s life.   Waiting to see if the mass grows may waste valuable therapeutic time if the mass turns out to be cancer.   Lumps developing on or under the skin are often benign tumors but there is no sure  way to know visually or by feel.    Such lumps may be cysts, abscesses, or benign fatty tumors or a life threatening cancer.    It is very important to evaluate such a growth as soon as possible by either a needle aspiration biopsy and/or excision of the entire mass.    Either the aspiration biopsy of the mass  or complete excision will provide a specimen that can be sent to the laboratory  for a complete microscopic evaluation by  a pathologist.    This way cancers can be identified and removed before they have had a chance to spread to other areas of the body.     Pet owners should be made aware that what often appears to be a benign fatty growth can not be distinguished from a cancerous mast cell tumor by simply feeling it .     Of course, non cancerous fatty tumors are by far more common than cancerous mast cell tumors but playing the odds is not a good idea when loosing the bet might mean your pet could die from  cancer.   If the lump turns out not to be a tumor but, on the other hand ,  a cyst,  or abscess the  mass can be either opened up and its contents cleaned out or it could be removed in its entirety and thrown out with the trash.     If cryo surgery is to be used to remove the growth then excising a small piece of tissue before the freezing begins will allow tissue to be sent to the pathologist .

If you feel any sort of mass on your dog or cats body please do not sit around and watch it growth.  Schedule an appointment with your veterinarian so that he can give you his honest opinion about how to proceed.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

There has been much more interest in holistic and alternative medicine in recent years.   Pet owners are becoming more sophisticated and are less likely to blindly trust drugs as the only solution to their pets problem.     Pet owners are becoming more suspicious of drugs and know that many can have serious side effects.   In addition, the failure of traditional,  drug medicine to effectively deal with chronic disease makes pet owners even more interested in looking  for and  frequently trying an alternative,  more natural approach to healing.    The failure of traditional medicine to address chronic immune mediated disease is one the main reasons pet owners are becoming disenchanted with conventional medicine.

These immune system  diseases are treated conventionally with immune suppressive drugs and antibiotics which suppress symptoms and treat secondary effects but do not address the primary cause of the problem.    Examples of such diseases are:  inflammatory bowel disease, inflammatory bladder disease in cats, and degenerative intervertebral disk disease including spondylosis.    Conventional therapy for these diseases, steroids and antibiotics, is not strongly supported by research studies and yet the traditional veterinary establishment frequently finds fault with holistic therapies  for not having the double blind studies to support its unconventional approach.      These traditional veterinarians seem to be unaware that many of their everyday conventional protocols are based only on the experience of individuals and are not  “evidence based”  which is their own established method for determining the legitimacy of treatments.

Conventional drug medicine is to be congratulated at  it’s success in treating acute disease and emergencies, however it falls very short in treating chronic disease in such a way that the patient ends up truly healthier after the treatment.     Although traditional medicine may be quite effective in suppressing the symptoms of these chronic diseases the therapy is often detrimental to the long term survival of the patient and he or she may become progressivel y weaker over time.    The conventionally prescribed drugs may often give immediate relief from chronic symptoms  but all too  often the price that is paid  is that  additional drugs are necessary  to treat the secondary symptoms and complications caused by the original therapy.   Far too often the  original cause of the problem is not addressed and, consequently,  the need for continual  drug therapy with its inherent complications is ongoing.

Yes people and their pets may be living somewhat longer than before but many are sicker than the last generation and the quality of their lives has been reduced.    The question should not be one of life span but really of “health span”.     What good is living longer if you are hurting or  sick.     The epidemic increase in auto immune and inflammatory disease is extremely troubling but conventional medicine has failed to address disease from an immunological point of view.    Consequently, traditional medicine has gone down the road of symptom suppression and not of true diseases prevention.
Holistic medicine, both human and animal,   focuses on repairing or modulating  breakdowns in the patients immune system and  bodily functions.   It looks for   genetic weaknesses,  mal nutritiion, and environmental toxicities in an attempt to fix the problem.  Killing germs with bigger and better antibiotics simply ignores the real underlying cause of the disease.   It is important to understand that infections are usually a secondary effect of immune system defects.  Dr. Louis Pasteur was the formulator of the germ theory of disease.     His position was that germs are the cause of most diseases and therefore antibiotic therapy is the solution      A contemporary of Pasteur, Dr. Claude Bernard a famous French physiologist  was of a different opinion.   He taught that the real cause of infectious disease is not germs but a defect  in patients immune system which allowed the germs to get a foot hold and mulptiply.   As the story goes, on his death bed Pasteur acknowledge that Bernard was right and agreed that it is the break down in the body’s immune defense and not the germs which  result in disease.   However, Pasteur had been the more charismatic speaker and his position  became the conventional dogma and took the medical  and veterinary profession down a road where the search for the magic bullet (antibiotics and allopathic drugs) was prime objective.    If  Dr Bernard would have been better at selling his approach the medicalthan profession would look far different  than it does today .

Holistic medicine also realizes that everything put on or in the body, whether through diet, vaccination or pesticide treatment can have a short and long term effect on the health of a sensitive individual . That’s why it’s so important to feed a healthy diet.    Hippocrates the father of medicine spoke the famous words,  “Let food be thy medicine”.    Nutritional and herbal therapy are much safer and gentler approaches to disease and , more often than not,  address the cause of the problem at a deeper level with few to no side effects.

Holistic veterinary medicine has been growing exponentially in recent years to address this growing need and demand of small animal veterinary medicine.  Membership in organizations such as The American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, The Academy of  Veterinary Homeopathy, The American Veterinary Chiropractic Society, and The International Veterinary Acupuncture Society has taken off in this last decade. To learn more about these various modalities, including where to find a trained veterinary practitioner in these areas, and how they may be of help to especially chronically ill pets, one can start at the websites www.AHVMA.org

When seeking out a holistic veterinarian it’s important to make sure that they are adequately trained in their particular area of interest, and that they receive ongoing continuing education each year. Just as there are great variation in conventional veterinary medical skills and practice, the same can be said of holistic veterinary medical practitioners, especially as there is growing interest and an economic niche seen in this area of veterinary medicine.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

Regardless of  whether we are talking about pets or people,  chronic inflammatory disease   is closely  associated with  poor blood flow and  poor  oxygenation of the affected  tissue or organ.   The reduced supply of oxygen to the tissue results in a buildup of lactic acid  and a decrease in the number of  electrons available for cellular energy production and healing .   Pain and dysfunction are the end result when  reduced tissue blood flow diminishes available cellular energy necessary  for  healing inflammatory disease.

Now that we understand how  chronic inflammation is related to a decreased tissue blood supply and poor oxygenation  it only makes sense to ask how we can increase the poor blood flow to an inflammed  area .    One of the best ways is to dilate the blood vessels feeding the chronically inflammed tissue.    This can be accomplished in several   ways.   Providing your pet with supplements containing the amino acid arginine produces  vasodilatation by increasing the body’s production of nitric oxide.     A second   way  to promote vasodilatation and increased tissue oxygenation is through acupuncture.   In research studies acupuncture has been shown to stimulate nitric oxide production, dilate blood vessels, and consequently bring more oxygen and healing energy to chronically diseased tissue.      Whether we use arginine supplementation or  acupuncture  the increased tissue oxygenation will decrease unwanted acidity and increase cellular energy  both of  which will encourage damaged tissue to heal.

Regularly exercising your pets is a third way to support tissue oxygenation.      Pets that are encouraged to exercise will have better overall circulation to their tissues.    The better circulation will result in higher  levels of cellular energy and more rapid healing.    Whether you walk, jog, play fetche or Frisbee with your pet the enhanced level of activity and blood flow will definitely benefit both you and your pet.

Another way of  increasing oxygenation of your pet’s organs and tissues is by using nutritional supplements.   Dimethylgycine is a well known nutrient that is used by athletes, both human and animal, to support the immune system and increase endurance by allowing for better tissue oxygenation.     Another nutrient, Mega hydrate,  is an extremely powerful antioxidant that can helps oxygenate, hydrate, and detoxify your pets damaged cells.     Gingko Biloba is a well known herb that causes vasodilation and consequently better tissue oxygenation.   Adding Celtic sea salt to your pet’s food on a daily basis will reduce tissue acidity and help keep the body better oxygenated.    Celtic sea salt is very helpful in treating arthritis and kidney disease.   Regularly feeding your pet fresh colorful veggies will provide additional  antioxidants that will support tissue oxygenation and reduce inflammation.

Massage therapy can be a very pleasant way for you to encourage blood flow to your pet’s  sore or damaged bones, joints and muscles.   With very minimal training you can learn to massage chronicly painful areas and bring healing blood and oxygen into to the tissue.    There are also simple physical therapy techniques you can learn, such as putting damaged joints through their range of motion.   These techniques   will encourage better blood flow to an area  and increase the rate of healing.    Ozone therapy is a way of  adding oxygen to bodily tissues either by giving an ozone enema or by saturating a lactated ringers solution with ozone and then infusing the lactated ringers under the skin.   Oral hydrogen peroxide therapy is one more way of increasing oxygen in the tissues.

The above suggestions for  preventing or limiting inflammatory disease by increasing tissue oxygenation  address healing  your pet at a very fundamental level.      Treating inflammation in this way is much preferred to  using  steroids or non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs which do not heal but simply  mask symptoms of pain and dysfunction.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

There are many theories as to why and how acupuncture works in pets and people.     It is believed that acupuncture increases the blood levels of many different substances in the blood and spinal cord.    Cortisone, endorphins, and serotonin are just a few of the body’s pain killing chemicals that are produced when acupuncture is performed.      In just the last few years the discovery that the inner lining of blood vessel produces a substance known as nitric oxide which controls vascular dilation and constriction has led to the most cutting edge theory of acupuncture.

It has been known for some time that  chronic inflammatory areas of the body are often painful and have a decreased blood supply.   This decreased circulation leads to decreased tissue oxygenation and increased tissue acidity.   Poor oxygenation and acidity resullt in pain and dysfunction.     In just the last few years  research has discovered that an increase  “nitric oxide synthase” activity   is present around acupuncture meridians channels and acupuncture points.    It is now accepted as  fact that, by causing vaso dilation and vaso constriction, nitric oxide is  a key regulator of  blood circulation and tissue oxygenation.    Research has further shown that when acupuncture is used to treat areas of chronic disease, blood plasma levels of nitric oxide increase and blood flow to those areas subsequently increases.    Double blind studies have shown that when acupuncture was performed on normal body areas the blood flow did not increase whereas it did when acupuncture was used to treat chronicly inflammed tissue.   It is believed that when acupuncture needles are inserted and rotated in soft tissue, they stimulate the fascial sheath  that surrounds cells and increases nitric oxide production, vasodilation, increased tissue oxygenation and pain control.    Of course the production of endorphins, cortisone and serotonin also occurs with acupuncture and no doubt further helps with pain control.

Regardless of which theory is right we continued to be amazed at how effective acupuncture is when treating intervertebral disk disease.    Many people who can not afford $2500 for an MRI and $3000 for disk surgery have found acupuncture to be a life savor.    Of course acupuncture is also effective for many other  problems such as hip dysplasia, arthritis, chronic licking, and epilepsy.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio

Rubeola Virus Immunomodulator (RVI) is an extremely dilute injection of Rubeola virus.   It was originally licensed  for veterinary use to treat myositis and fibromyalgia in horses.   It has recently become available to small animal veterinarians but only with specific stipulations.   The use of RVI in small animals has been primarily for the treatment of spondylosis and intervertebral disk disease.  However Iam sure it also helps muscle inflammation as it does in horses.   Back in 1992 Dr. Don Polley wrote an article in a veterinary journal which discusses his experience using RVI on dogs.    In this article he was extremely enthusiastic about his results and it was because of this article that I became interested in the product.   When I first tried to get a bottle of RVI  I was told it was not yet available for use in Michigan but later was approved for veterinary use for dogs but only after the veterinarian got  special written permission  from the  Office of the State Veterinarian.
Spondylosis is an arthritic disease which produces “bone spurs” at the end of each vertebra.   These bone spurs continue to enlarge and will eventually bridge the intervertebral disk space and form a calcified splint across the joint.    It Is believed that the formation of these spurs , bridges and calcified splints is the body’s way of stabilizing a hyper-mobile joint that results from a disk collapse.   If these bone spurs become large enough they will impinge on the spinal nerve root and slow nerve transmission.    Bone spurs and calcified bridges can easily be seen radiographically.   Often multiple vertebral segments are involve.   Giving  a series of  RVI injections can reduce inflammation,  restore the nerve transmission and strengthen the gait.     The injections are given just under the skin and not in the muscle so they are not uncomfortable.     Response to these injection is often  rapid and within 1 week to 10 days we will usually be able to determine if therapy was successful.     Success is based on the disappearance of such symptoms as hind leg weakness,  knuckling over and dragging the toes, and a drunken appearance to the gait.   RVI injections  are quite safe and few to no reactions have been reported.     Electro-acupuncture, natural hydrocortisone therapy, pulsed magnetic therapy, soft laser therapy and infrasonic therapy are other modalities that can be used in place of RVI therapy or sometimes along with it.

At this writing I have only performed this therapy on 5 animals and have had good success on three.    Of course if the above mentioned symptoms are a result of an acutely ruptured disk,  a spinal tumor or a fibro cartilaginous infarct the RVI series will probably not produce a significant change.

RVI therapy usually consists of a series of 6 daily injections.

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Woodside Animal Clinic is a unique, very personal, one doctor practice where, for over 35 years, Dr. Simon has been healing dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets rodents, and reptiles with both conventional andalternative medicine. Dr. Simon is certified in Acupuncture, Chiropractic and Stem cell therapy. He is the author of 4 pet care books, a past president of the Oakland County Veterinary Medical Association and past board member of the  American Holistic Veterinary Association.   Visit us at  www.doc4pets.com

Woodside Animal Clinic sees pets from all over Michigan but primarily from the greater Detroit area including Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston and Washtenaw counties. Cities in these counties including Royal Oak, Berkley, Huntington Woods, Ferndale, Pleasant Ridge, Detroit, Redford, Livonia, Hazel Park, Madison Heights, Warren, Centerline, Clawson, Troy, Sterling Heights, Southfield, Birmingham, Lathrup Village, Bingham Farms,  Franklin, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Novi, Northville,Wixom, Brighton, Livonia, Plymouth, Commerce, Ann Arbor, Ortonville, Clarkston, Waterford, Union Lake, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Utica, White Lake, Grosse Pointe, Romeo, Swartz Creek,  Shelby township, Washington,  Flint, Hartland, Lansing, Okemos, Howell, Brighton, White Lake, Romeo, Saline, South Lyon, Battle Creek, Saginaw, Windsor Canada, Toledo Ohio