Can acupuncture be used on animals?

Acupuncture has helped millions of people for centuries. It is based upon the concept that the body has meridians, or energy lines, running along it, and when the body is out of balance the energy lines are blocked in some way. The use of needles at different acupuncture points will rebalance or redirect this energy and balance out the body. Since people have noticed changes and are reaping the benefits of acupuncture, many loving animal owners are turning to this age old practice to help out their animals. Acupuncture offers another alternative to animals in need without the use of painkillers and steroids. The meridians in animals are extrapolated from those in people and were researched over the years by practitioners, she says. Animal acupuncture has been practiced widely in Asia for many thousands of years. Due to the different anatomy in species, the acupuncture points in animals are in different places, as the bones and structure vary between species even though the origin points are the same. An animal should receive acupuncture treatments depending on how severe the pain and the problem of the animal is. There are many different conditions that respond well to acupuncture in animals. Symptoms such as arthritis, back problems and other ailments that are painful in animals can seek acupuncture treatments so that an animal can overcome its medical condition. Acupuncture can treat anything from kidney failure to obesity, as well. The Chinese have used acupuncture to treat disease for more than 4,000 years in humans as well as animals. “Chinese concepts believe that acupuncture therapy is based on balancing the energy and correcting the flow and healing the animal,” says Annie Sturman, a licensed acupuncture physician who has been helping patients with pain and illnesses for the past 20 years. Acupuncture is often chosen to compliment traditional therapy or provide another form of medical therapy. Appetite stimulation, nausea control and immune modulation can aid animals with cancer, immune deficiencies and seizure tendencies. There are many acupuncture veterinarians; they can assist with many medical problems. As with humans, herbs are given to animals as remedies. When animals are sick, can’t hold food down and have pain, they are perfect candidates to receive acupuncture treatments. As with any practice, acupuncture in animals should be given by a veterinary surgeon. It is against the law for anyone else to do so. Only a vet can diagnose an animal’s condition, recommend the right course of treatment and administer that treatment. Acupuncture is not a cure all for animals either, nor does the treatment work for every animal that receives treatment. However, it should be used when every other treatment fails, Sturman says.