Alternative medicine is the use of a combination of therapies to treat the whole animal and restore balance so that the body can heal itself. The three most common therapies used by holistic veterinarians are acupuncture, chiropractic care, and homeopathy. A holistic approach to healing involves a consideration of the entire animal, not just the symptoms of its disease. This approach considers that the physical and psychological health of the animal are equally important. An animal's diet, lifestyle, relationships, and stress levels affect its health, and all these aspects need to be considered when treating illness.

The Holistic Approach

Many chronic diseases are the result of a compromised immune system. Compromises to immunity include poor diet, exposure to chemicals and toxins, overmedication, poor water and air quality, and overvaccination. Holistic practitioners aim to balance the body's internal mechanisms so that the body can regain health, an approach that is quite different from the conventional practitioner, who looks at and treats only the symptoms of disease.

The holistic approach considers the underlying causes of disease, not just the symptoms that are present. In a holistic approach, it is believed that each organ system affects the others. If there is illness in one system and it is treated, it shifts the position of all the other systems. The whole body is dynamic. It is the interaction among the different metabolic systems that gives the body balance and the ability to heal itself.

Tools of the Trade

Alternative practitioners use a wide variety of tools to help the animal reclaim health. Most holistic veterinarians are quick to point out that what they do to the animal is less important to its overall recovery than what they try to balance. Common tools for holistic veterinarians are diet and nutrition counseling, acupuncture, chiropractic adjustment, homeopathy, enzymes and dietary supplements, and flower essences.

There are times when antibiotics are given or surgery is performed but unlike the Western approach, alternatives are explored in combination with or instead of the application of antibiotics or other medications. Being able to address the whole animal is very important to permanent healing and an overall return to good health. Some of the best tools of the trade involve the holistic veterinarian's experience, knowledge, and skill at applying the alternative therapies, as well as an understanding of when a combination of therapies will give the dog the best chance of being able to return to full health.

A two-year-old male Golden watching field practice.

Continually bombarding a compromised immune system with antibiotics or vaccinations may work to temporarily alleviate a symptom or ward off a particular disease. But if there is a greater underlying problem that is not being addressed, the animal will revert back to illness, and this time its body will be even more compromised and out of balance. Regardless of the method used to treat the illness, careful consideration of the entire animal must be made in order to push the healing in the right direction.