Treating Animals with Acupuncture

It has long been known that acupuncture is a great way to treat many disorders and diseases with the alternative therapy that’s called acupuncture. There are a great many benefits to the therapy and it is practiced literally all over the world. Even though there are many questions that need to be raised as to how the whole process works, many people are just fine and satisfied with the fact that they don’t need empirical data in order to see that acupuncture truly works. But one issue that you may not have thought of before is whether or not animals are able to be subject to the same alternative therapy of acupuncture as humans are. This is naturally a delicate issue that many people don’t take lightly, but when it comes to pets living in homes there are also many people who are concerned about the health of their animals. Here is some food for thought when trying to decide if animal acupuncture is the best thing for your pet:

Does Acupuncture Work on Pets?

Just as there are those who say that acupuncture is not a therapy and doesn’t work on humans, the same people are the ones who usually state that acupuncture doesn’t work on pets, either. On the other hand, there are some people who believe in acupuncture for strictly humans and contend that acupuncture doesn’t reach to the animal world. Nevertheless, there is also no real and hard evidence in favor of or to the contrary that animal acupuncture should or should not be practiced. Even though there has been less acupuncture practiced on dogs, cats, and other animals, the fact that the alternative therapy is not usually practiced on animals should shed light on the fact that it doesn’t work, or at least not too well!

Is Acupuncture Practiced on Pets?

Even though the skeptics of acupuncture don’t enjoy the thought of having acupuncture practiced on their beloved pets, it is true that there are some certified acupuncture therapists who will perform an acupuncture therapy on their cats, dogs, and other pets. Just because acupuncture works for humans doesn’t mean that it can’t work for pets, too. On the other hand, there are also those who do practice acupuncture on humans that also say that acupuncture should not be practiced on animals.

Nevertheless, though, some people believe that the same pressure points that can be found on a human can also be found on a dog or a cat. These dogs and cats are also said to have an energy source, such as the Chi in humans, and that energy source is where cats and dogs derive all their pain from. The whole idea, though, of practicing acupuncture on cats and dogs have come directly from those who already currently practice the alternative therapy on humans and themselves. In fact, there have been some cases where practicing acupuncture on pets, including dogs and cats, has worked, but there has not been a substantial number of pets that have been healed by acupuncture, at least in the United States.

When considering having your pet treated with acupuncture, though, all one needs to do is consider the many benefits and downsides to doing so. If one truly is an advocate of acupuncture, though, chances are that he or she will trust it for their pets as well!