HeartFire Veterinary Acupuncture & Holistic Health Care
Caring for your pet the natural way
Our Mission
Our mission at HeartFire Veterinary Acupuncture & Holistic Health Care is to help pets and their families enjoy the very best quality of life possible using nutrition, herbs, acupuncture and environmental enrichment. We are here to help you care for your pet in the most natural way possible.
What is Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM)?
Traditional Chinese Medicine has existed for thousands of years and TCVM has evolved as a medical system for animals from TCM. In Chinese medical theory, disease arises from imbalances in the body and diagnosis proceeds by identifying these patterns of disharmony.
TCVM uses 5 modalities of treatment to achieve rebalance of these disharmonies: Nutrition, Herbs, Acupuncture, Exercise and Manipulation/Massage. Every individual has a different treatment plan as every individual has a different constitution, diet, environment, sex, age and lifestyle. No two treatment plans will be the same. TCVM is a holistic approach best suited for assessing the wellbeing of the whole individual and treatments are non invasive and have few side effects.
Integration of Western Veterinary Medicine (WVM) and TCVM
Western Veterinary Medicine (WVM) is more symptom dependent and seeks to find and eliminate disease causing agents. They use many “anti” pharmaceutical drugs – anti-inflammatories, anti-histamines, anti-parasitics, anti-convulsants, etc. These medications tend to be strong and act swiftly. They also tend to be suppressive in nature so are not well suited for long term use without creating complications elsewhere in the body or poorly tolerated side effects. WVM is ideally suited for short term acute disease processes or traumas such as a broken leg, hit by car or serious infection.
TCVM is better suited for long term chronic disease processes that require support of the whole body and shifting of the underlying imbalances to cure or manage the disharmony over time. TCVM is used for chronic allergy issues, IBD, diarrhea, chronic liver or kidney disease, poorly controlled seizures, cancer processes, pancreatitis, asthma, paralysis and chronic pain from arthritis or disc disease.
Testimonials
"To find hidden pain in their silence, To find essence of love in the way they look, To know without being told, To heal by touch, A lifetime I should learn to be a Veterinarian." - The Dark Knight
What can we provide for you and your furbaby?
Acupuncture is the stimulation of specific points on the body using very fine needles, laser light or injection of vitamin B12 into the points. Stimulation of these points helps restore balance and flow of the vital energy known as Qi (pronounced “chee”).
Herbal medicines are often used in situations where western veterinary medical drugs have not worked or need additional support. Herbal medicines can be as effective as pharmaceuticals with fewer side effects.
“Most disease starts in the gut” – Hippocrates
Chinese food therapy uses the energetics of food to help restore homeostasis in the body. Much as the sun and rain and good soil nourish the health of a tree from the inside out. Good whole food will do the same for our bodies. Food is the foundation for good health.