We all love our pets and want them to have long, pain free lives. Unfortunately as they age, they suffer from some of the same painful diseases the people do. Pain pills help, but often have bad side effects and don't always alleviate the animal's suffering. I found a way to ease the pains of my old dog and extend his life. Acupuncture.
When I noticed my ten-year-old Lab, Clark, still seemed to be in limping and in pain in spite of daily medication, I called my veterinarian and asked if he had any suggestions. He referred me to a wonderful vet who does acupuncture on animals. It's not inexpensive but I love my dogs so much I'll give something up in order to have the money to pay for treatments. We made an appointment for the following week.
I was afraid the needles would hurt my dog but when I met the vet he quickly allied my fears. I could tell immediately that he was one of the special ones, who really love and care about animals.
To start, I sat on the floor next to my boy, stroking him while the doctor inserted needles. Clark never felt a thing. The vet told me we would have to wait about fifteen minutes for the full effect, so we chatted while Clark enjoyed all the attention. Once the needles were removed, Clark wandered off to take a nap. That's a typical response. For some reason, acupuncture makes animals sleepy.The vet came weekly for two months, then monthly and finally we went to quarterly visits. Clark got better with each treatment until I never saw him limp. He ran and played with his two sisters in the back yard, his appetite was good - too good, he was a Lab and overweight, but mostly his quality of life improved exponentially.
We cut way back on the pain medication, and eventually were able to stop giving it to Clark.We were able to enjoy Clark for two more years until he left us to go to the Rainbow Bridge. I know without a doubt, that the acupuncture treatments not only extended his live, but also made his quality of life much better. In the future I wouldn't hesitate to give my dogs acupuncture again.