A Path With Paws

The number one question I receive from people visiting this blog is “how to I find a good holistic vet to work with?” It is a good question!

Here are some suggestions and resources to do this

• Ask your animal’s veterinarian From my experience there is not as large a divide between western medicine and holistic veterinary medicine in this country as there is in the human medical community. Part of the reason for this is that we are all veterinarians. I had a full western veterinary education and practiced it for six years before I learned acupuncture. I still use my western training daily. Because of this the mainstream vets trust us, they are less worried that we will do something that harms an animal or makes their treatments not work. I receive about half my patients through vet referrals. The vets that refer to me, know me, trust me and give me full access to their records and that makes it easier to coordinate treatments with them.
• Take a visit to your local pet food store. I’m not talking the big box stores like Petco and Petsmart but your local independent stores or small chains. In Seattle these include Next to Nature, Mud Bay, All the Best, Pet Elements, and many more. Hopefully you have one in your area. These stores are very good at educating their staff on nutrition and options for people’s animals with disease conditions. They also hear stories from people all day long about their animals. They know the local practitioners and who is good. Ask them! They are always happy to share.
• Ask people at the dog park or you meet walking dogs.The best referral is word of mouth. People love to share stories about their dogs and I think we just naturally want to recommend practitioners who have helped our animals.
• Search holistic veterinarian or veterinary acupuncturist “your city” online. The internet got you here, it should help you with this also.
• Use one of the tools from the various holistic veterinary societies.
  • International Veterinary Acupuncture Society Find a Veterinary Acupuncturist (right side of screen)
  • Veterinary Botanical Medical Association Find a Vet in the US
  • Veterinary Botanical Medical Association Find a Vet International
  • Animal Essentials Find a Holistic Vet

Do all holistic veterinarians know acupuncture and other kinds of natural medicine? What is the best type of holistic veterinarian for my animal?

Most of us do not practice all holistic modalities, and even those with a wide area of systems they work with, usually have a few they are very good at and some that they just do a little of.

I consider myself a very good acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist. I am a TCM or Traditional Chinese Medical practitioner. In addition I do some western herbal medicine, know something about supplements and vitamins, occasionally dip into homeopathy and flower essences and am pretty good at nutrition. I can not do chiropractics, do not know aryuvedic herbal medicine, and can not do classic homeopathy.

Because of this if you came to see me with your animal I would most likely recommend acupuncture and Chinese herbs because those are the two modalities that work best in my hands. If you went to someone who specialized in aryuvedic herbal medicine and homeopathy they would probably recommend a therapy that included those modalities.

Ever holistic vet is going to be a little different in their knowledge.

What is the difference between all these methods of treatment?

I am going to use mostly links to websites since there are so many good explanations already out there and then adds my own thoughts so please click on the links for more info.

• Naturopathic medicine – I think of most naturopaths as using a combination of dietary therapy, supplements, vitamins and western herbals to cure disease and bring about balance in the body. In Washington state human Naturopaths are on the same level as MDs and can prescribe most drugs, do blood tests and do small surgical procedure. Of course veterinary naturopaths will be western veterinary doctors already.
• Traditional Chinese Medicine – This is the type of medicine I practice. It includes acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine used together in synergy. TCM also uses it’s own system of diagnosis that is very different than western medicine. Through TCM I am often able to fit many symptoms and diseases an animal is suffering from into one Chinese diagnosis and I find it easier to treat hard to diagnose and chronic conditions that western medicine has trouble with
• Acupuncture There are many practitioners who practice acupuncture alone under the TCM system or practice acupuncture under a more western system. From my experience the best practitioners use TCM to diagnose and treat.
• Botanical or Herbal Medicine There are many types of Botanical Medicine. The most common are
  • Ayurvedic Herbal Medicine – This is an Indian system of treating disease and dysfunction that also includes diet.
  • Western Herbal Medicine includes European, American, and Native American plant medicine.
  • Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine – see TCM above. Most Chinese herbal medicine uses herbal in combinations that work together so that the formula is not the sum of the herbals used but how the herbs react with either other. This makes it possible to use herbals that would be toxic alone by combining them with others which reduce their toxicity and also makes it possible to target herbs to a certain area of the body, among other things.
• Homeopathy – Classic homeopathy is a very complex system and takes many years to learn. Many of us use more of a “cookbook form” of homeopathy.
• Chiropractors – focus mainly on adjustments to the spine

Return to Integrative and Holistic Methods for Treating Cancer in Cats and Dogs

Osteosarcoma or bone cancer is one of the most painful cancers but it is also one that I have had the most success with using integrative and alternative treatments.

When I was studying with my acupuncture teacher, Richard Panzer, I met an incredible great dane with osteosarcoma. She was fairly young and her prognosis was not good. However she would bounce into the clinic twice a week for acupuncture treatments, full of life. Her tumor slowly became larger but the cancer did not spread to her lungs, which is typical of this disease. Eventually when she became extremely painful they made the decision to amputate her affected leg. I heard that she later died of a disease unrelated to her bone cancer.

The first dog I treated with osteosarcoma, Maggie, had a similar story. She went a year before her bone was so weakened from the cancer that it broke and her leg had to be amputated in an emergency surgery. She is still alive over five years later. Here is her full story, Maggie’s story – Sometimes three legs are better than four.

In all the dogs I have treated, I see about 70% of them beat bone cancer. Most dogs die of something else. However, if amputation is not an option, pain becomes the factor that causes their human companions to put them to sleep. Even the strongest pain medications can not control the pain of osteosarcoma.

With no treatment, most dogs with osteosarcoma will live three months after diagnosis and die from lung metastases—when the cancer spreads to the lungs. However herbal medicine has some amazing tools to keep cancer out of the lungs and make it so dogs can live with osteosarcoma and sometimes go into complete remission if we can amputate the primary tumor.

I’m seeing more and more pet parents use an integrative approach — doing 3-6 rounds of chemotherapy combined with holistic medicine and where available, immunotherapy treatments. I recommend consulting an oncologist.

So what is my protocol for osteosarcoma?

1. Amputation – Above all I recommend amputation if it is at all possible. This is a very painful cancer. The only way to get rid of the pain is to amputate. There is no way to get rid of the primary tumor without amputation even with chemo, radiation, or immunotherapy. This is the most important treatment, in my opinion. I know it seems like a major and harsh option, but most of these dogs immediately feel better from amputation. It’s hard to recognize how much pain they have been in before we amputate. Pain medication can not adequately control the pain of osteosarcoma.
2. Immunotherapy — in recent years, two forms of immunotherapy vaccines are showing significant success in treating osteosarcoma: the “Yale/EGFR/HER2” vaccine which can be administered with or without amputation, and the “Torigen” vaccine which does require amputation and use of the body part to develop the vaccine. Be sure to ask your oncologist about both.
3. A cancer diet – this means a high protein diet with no grains. Ideally it should be cooked or canned. Raw is also ok if your dog will tolerate it and is not getting chemo. Don’t give this cancer the fuel it needs. Please see the article Diets for cancer in cats and dogs.
4. Artemisinin. – Follow this link for more information about the supplement and how it is given. Artemisinin is under study at the University of Washington for its effect against bone cancer in people. Do not use artemisinin if your animal is getting radiation.
5. Sanshedan Chuanbeiye – This is my number one herbal for keeping cancer out of the lungs. Follow this link for more information about this herbal.
6. Acupuncture – I recommend weekly or every other week acupuncture depending on the stage of illness. Acupuncture can slow down this disease, boost the immune system and help with pain. To find a veterinary acupuncturist in your area use this tool IVAS find an acupuncturist.

In addition I sometimes use the following:

1. Hoxsey like formula – if your dog is very hot with a lot of panting and heat intolerance or if amputation is not possible I recommend adding in this formula. If the primary tumor remains then boneset should be added to this formula to treat bone pain.
2. Mushrooms can help to boost your dog’s immune system and support them during treatment.
3. Pain medication, if amputation is not possible. This is a very painful cancer. If the primary tumor remains western pain medication is a must. Most dogs should be on a NSAID such as Rimadyl, Tramadol and possibly Gabapentin.
4. Radiation treatments, if amputation is not possible. Radiation treatments can help with the pain of osteosarcoma. I highly recommend talking to an oncologist about this option if amputation is not possible. If your animal is getting radiation do not give artemisinin. Milk thistle can help to enhance the effects of radiation and decrease the side effects.

If there is radiographic (x-ray) evidence of lung metastasis please read Breathing through cancer – holistic therapies to control lung metastasis in cancer; and talk to an oncologist about the “Yale/EGFR/HER2” vaccine referenced above. It is currently showing promising results in clinical trials for lung metastasis.

I have known quite a few very happy three legged dogs. Dogs are great at just taking life one day at a time. I believe that this is a treatable cancer. Every dog will follow their own path, however I have been amazed at how well this herbal and acupuncture protocol can work.

Even though I have had a lot of success in treating this cancer, I recommend that you consult with an oncologist to make sure you know all your options. If possible find a good holistic vet in your area to help create a herbal program for your dog and do acupuncture treatments. If they are trained in acupuncture but not herbal medicine bring them this article.

As with all articles on this blog, please consult with your animal’s primary veterinarian about coming up with a protocol for your dog or cat and before using these products. Every dog is individual and there may be a better protocol for your dog then what I suggest based on their personal medical history and constitution.

Some cancers are more aggressive than others and even though I have had a lot of success with treating osteosarcoma, this protocol may not work for everyone.

Very rarely does this cancer occur in cats. However even though this article is written for dogs, I have used these herbals in cats as well.

Return to Integrative and Holistic Methods for Treating Cancer in Cats and Dogs