Complementary Medicine:
 Acupuncture in Veterinary Practice

The article describes the case of a seven-year-old castrated male Pug weighing 31 pounds that had undergone spinal surgery for multiple degenerative intervertebral disc protrusions and had periodic acute episodes of pain following seven months freedom of pain post surgical. MRI eight months post-surgical revealed no significant lesions to explain the pain. The dog was given eight acupuncture treatments through a two month period after which the owner reported significant improvement, even after the first treatment. On re-exam, the dog had no evidence of pain in the lumbar spine and the range of motion in the hips had improved. The dog reportedly could take long walks without problems developing afterward. Acupuncture was not needed for a period of six months, at which time lumbosacral pain recurred. The pain resolved again with the follow-up acupuncture treatments.

(Editor's Note: All-Care Animal Referral Center is a multi-doctor, specialty referral hospital in Fountain Valley, California. Increasingly, veterinarians are recognizing the beneficial effects of acupuncture and are utilizing in-house veterinary acupuncturists with increasing frequency. Clinical response is not accepted by the general medical population as proof of efficacy or safety of a medical treatment. Therefore, there is an increasing interest in veterinary acupuncture to do more scientific studies that will stop the small, vocal anti-acupuncture community from attempting to limit the use of acupuncture on our veterinary patients. To this end, the American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture (AAVA) is attempting to fund humane studies to demonstrate the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture in animals. The AAVA Pet Memorial Fund is one way we are trying to develop the finances to fund such needed research. If you wish to help AAVA fund these research programs, consider a memorial donation in the name of your own, or acquaintances, deceased pet. What better way to honor the memory of a beloved pet, that was helped by acupuncture, than to donate to further benefit acupuncture for animals?AAVA Pet Memorial Fund)