When the Gilmores' dog, a rescue named Talus, tore a ligament in her knee, the family began looking for a vet.
By Vancouver Sun August 1, 2013
When the Gilmores' dog, a rescue named Talus, tore a ligament in her knee, the family began looking for a vet.
"We went to a place with a good reputation, and which had a more holistic bent," Lisa Gilmore said. "But I think the vet we saw there was pretty new. She seemed scared of Talus, and said she couldn't examine her without sedating her."
However, even the mild sedative took days to wear off. "This was a healthy dog, just over a year old, and it took three or four days to get the sedation out of her body," Gilmore said. "She stunk, and she was all dopey for two days. She wasn't eating properly. It scared me."
At that point, Gilmore looked into homeopathy for her pet.
"I knew with such a small body - well, she's a big dog, but small compared to humans - and with a short lifespan, I wanted to make sure we were giving her the best chances," Gilmore said. "I'm not a huge believer in always using conventional medicine. I think there's a place for it, but I don't think it's always the first line of defence."
They found someone who was trained as a traditional vet, but who also practised homeopathy. Talus was given a homeopathic anesthetic before surgery and a homeopathic pain remedy called Arnica 1M for post-surgery.
"She was in major pain from surgery, unable to use the leg initially and requiring pain meds often," Gilmore said.
The homeopath advised her to administer the remedy whenever Talus seemed to be in pain.
"We slept on the floor beside our dog in the first day or so, and when she was in pain she would cry out like a baby," Gilmore said. "We'd give her one dose of 20-30 tiny homeopathic Arnica pellets and within five or 10 minutes she was sleeping again. I was sold on homeopathy at that point."
Homeopathy is a treatment based on holistic principles of looking at the patient as a whole, rather than just specific symptoms. Following an examination, a homeopath will prescribe a remedy, often delivered in liquid or pellet form, and made using natural substances. There are thousands of homeopathic remedies that are tested through what the homeopathic community calls "provings," which are non-laboratory-based tests and observations.
The success with the homeopathic vet for Talus' torn ligament led Gilmore to consider homeopathy for her five-year-old son Cale. She and her husband Brent had been unsure about vaccinations, but "doing nothing didn't seem to be a viable option," she said, "because we would feel we weren't doing as much as we could for him in terms of protecting him."
After researching homeopathic alternatives to vaccinations, Gilmore went to homeopath Elena Cecchetto at Access Natural Healing. Cecchetto offers homeopathic immunization protocols, a service that was the subject of a recent 15-year study by Australian naturopath Isaac Golden. The family later consulted Cecchetto about a painful condition in Cale's foot. Gilmore said it's simply a growing pain. "But when the option is plugging him full of children's Tylenol or pain relievers, we look to El for ways of using homeopathy to help with pain relief, with a lot of success."
The Gilmores still see a homeopath, Julie Anne Lee, for Talus. Lee works for veterinarian Nenad Paunovic at Coquitlam Animal Hospital as part of the hospital's integrative health care services. When working with Lee, Paunovic will make a diagnosis and then delegate the treatment to the homeopath.
"It's not uncommon in North America to see veterinarians who are practising alternative veterinary medicine," Paunovic said.
"When it comes to homeopathy within my family, my kids, my wife, and my father see a homeopath. In a sense that experience is positive. I have to admit I see some limitations in applying all the principles of human homeopathy to veterinary medicine."
However, Paunovic said he has seen some improvements on previous cases, which is why he's incorporated homeopathy - depending on the diagnosis - at the clinic.
Homeopathy isn't taught in veterinary schools, but its practice is recognized by the province's governing body of vets, the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia.
"Outside of the owner, the only people entitled, under the Veterinarian's Act, to provide animal health services are veterinarians or other people working under a vet's supervision," said John Brocklebank, a doctor of veterinary medicine and deputy registrar with the CVBC.
"Homeopaths are not entitled to practise homeopathy on animals except under a veterinarian's supervision. If the client wishes to have homeopathy, and the veterinarian isn't comfortable with doing it, the vet would engage the homeopath. Direct supervision is a minimum requirement."
Besides pain relief, Gilmore also credits homeopathy with helping with a tumour that had been growing on Talus' rear.
"It was kind of shocking to see it happen," Gilmore said of the tumour. "It was a big external growth, and it was growing."
They started Talus on a homeopathic treatment and within a year, the tumour ruptured.
"We don't know if there's stuff going on inside, but the tumour she had is completely gone," Gilmore said.
Gilmore also believes that a homeopathic remedy is helping with her dog's fears. Talus, who had been abused before being rescued, "has come full circle," Gilmore said.
"She was very scared when we first got her. She's overcome her fear of loud noises.
"She no longer hides in the bathtub, she comes to us."
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario