Holistic Pet Care

• Posted on 19 January 2018
• By Dr. Christina Cole & Dr. Grant Tully
• Posted in animal chiropractic, AVCA, holistic pet care, IVCA, pet care, structural shifts
• 0

Holistic pet care is becoming more prevalent in many areas throughout the country.  Dogs, cats, and many more of our furry friends are getting great results by changing their nutrition, receiving acupuncture, and visiting their animal chiropractor among other things!

There is a health revolution making waves through the United States. People are tired of taking one drug after another to address ailments that can be treated naturally. However, did you know there is a shift going on in the pet world as well?  Holistic pet care is becoming more prevalent in many areas throughout the country. Dogs, cats, and many more of our furry friends are getting great results by changing their nutrition, receiving acupuncture, and visiting their animal chiropractor among other things!

What is holistic pet care?

Holistic pet care focuses on your dog, cat, or other family friends as a whole being – rather than the individual parts. Fortunately, more vets are practicing natural medicine today relative to any time before.  By merging traditional treatments with alternative methods, pets are seeing much better results and a higher quality of life. As such, many more vets are seeking out additional training in acupuncture, nutrition, herbal remedies, chiropractic and more.

What is animal chiropractic?

Animal chiropractic is similar in nature to “human” chiropractic. An animal chiropractor will check your pet for any areas of the spine that aren’t moving well or are in the wrong position. These misaligned areas of the spine are known as structural shifts. When an animal chiropractor finds a structural shift, they will make a very gentle correction to guide it back to normal. This will relieve pressure on the discs and nerves of the spine, in addition to reducing inflammation that may affect the muscles and joints in the area.  Concerned about the treatment injuring your dog? Don’t be. IVCA and AVCA board-certified animal chiropractors are trained to make corrections that are so gentle, you may miss them if you blink. In addition, there is very rarely any cracking or popping that many people associate with human chiropractic.

How does animal chiropractic contribute to holistic pet care?

Animal chiropractic takes care of a very important part of the body – the structure. Structural shifts of the spine lead to inflammation, degeneration, and more. Often times this inflammation can interfere with the spinal cord and nerves. This is problematic because these are the electric wires used to control the body. Structural shifts of the spine can contribute to communication issues between the brain and the cells of muscles, intestine, glands, and more.

Imagine for a second that you are watching satellite television. What happens if a thunderstorm rolls in?  You may notice that your television screen gets a little blurry. The thunderstorm creates a communication issue between your television and the satellite. This is similar in nature to what may occur in the body secondary to structural shifts of the spine. Structural shifts can lead to a breakdown in communication between your brain and the body. However, what might happen to your television screen if the storm clears up? You may notice that your screen clears up as well. This is the reason why many people use human chiropractors. They want their spine to be in optimal alignment to allow free-flowing communication between the brain and the body. This philosophy is now growing in the pet community!

To sum things up, there is a health revolution moving through the states and it includes our pets.  More vets than ever before are educating themselves on ways to treat pets holistically.  One of these treatments is chiropractic, and it addresses the structure of the spine.  This is important because structure determines function, so abnormal structure leads to abnormal function in the body!  Want to find your closest animal chiropractor?  You can check the IVCA website or AVCA website to locate a board-certified animal chiropractor near you.