OUR PHILOSOPHY
At Zephyr Equine, we aim to maximize your horse’s well-being, health, and performance by integrating acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) with advanced Western Medicine. Acupuncture and TCVM are not used instead of but in addition to Western Medicine. We work with you and your horse’s care team to augment both diagnostic and therapeutic results. This complementary approach leads to a more balanced, capable animal.
ACUPUNCTURE & TCVM
Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) have a long and established history in Asia. In fact, veterinary acupuncture was first developed for horses more than a thousand years ago, and later adapted to other animals. In the West, these modalities have not yet proven themselves with a substantial body of scientific research. But both the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) and the American Veterinary Medical Associations (AVMA) have called for further research to evaluate the potential of acupuncture and other “complementary” modalities. So far, early scientific evidence and a growing number of veterinarians’ experience confirm that acupuncture is a safe and effective, and that it can be a powerful modality in the treatment of many disorders. This is especially true for pain and lamenesses (musculoskeletal or neurologic), for reproductive disorders, for chronic or otherwise incurable conditions, and for horses (who typically respond better than humans, dogs, and cats).
PERFORMANCE CONCERNS
Equine athletes must be able to operate at their peak, in spite of the many demands placed on them. This can affect not only their soundness but also their general health and demeanor. Acupuncture and TCVM can do much to help with diagnosis and therapy but also prevention of musculoskeletal injuries and lamenesses. They can also support the rest of the horse as he/she deal with the stress & anxiety of showing, intense work, or prolonged lay ups.
And not all performance concerns apply to sport horses: family pets and retired athletes can benefit from the pain-reducing and relaxing benefits of acupuncture as well.
MEDICAL CONCERNS
When your horse is simply not him/herself, or when he/she is dealing with a complicated or untreatable diagnosis, we can combine Western and acupuncture/TCVM techniques to evaluate, treat, and support the following systems:
- Cardiovascular (heart)
- Respiratory (lungs)
- Urinary (kidneys and bladder)
- Hepatic (liver)
- Digestive (stomach and intestines)
- Neurologic (brain, spine, and nerves)
- Endocrine (metabolism)
- Immune (disease resistance)
- Ophthalmologic (eyes)
- Dermatologic (skin)
- Reproductive (breeding female or male)
- Neonatal (newborn foal)
- Behavioral (stress, aggression, etc)
THE WHOLE HORSE
In addition, acupuncture and TCVM require that practitioners consider their patient as more than a list of problems to fix. Instead, the patient and his/her conditions represents a whole greater than its parts, inseparable for the environment, the relationships, and the activities with which the animal engages. As a result, the same Western diagnosis (for instance, Cushing’s/PPID, or a suspensory ligament injury) can have different impacts in horses with different constitutions and living different lives, and therapy is taylored to the individual, not the disease. You may hear Dr C ask questions about things that first seem unrelated to a problem at hand - but in your horse, everything fits together.
For these reasons, this practice offers acupuncture to treat many conditions in horses. But although it is a great modality, it cannot treat everything and there are definitely conditions for which it is not indicated or where Western medicine has more to offer. If you would like to learn more about whether acupuncture can help your horse, please call us.
EMERGENCY SERVICES
At Zephyr Equine, we take special pride in serving your emergency needs. Horses are agile and clever (it’s why we enjoy them so much) but they sure can get into trouble. And trouble doesn’t have business hours, even if we do. We will do whatever we can to assist you. From simple wounds to complex lacerations to a bout of colic to a stranded horse, do not hesitate to call us at 503-610-6771.
PAYMENT
We accept cash, checks, major credit cards, and Care Credit.
BACKYARD POULTRY
Those of us with a passion for feathered ladies cluck-clucking, scratching, and laying little treasures in our back yards know that backyard poultry vets are few and far between. While Dr C’s poultry experience is considerably smaller than her experience with horses, let us know if you have any medical concerns for your chickens, and we will let you know if we can help. And hey, chickens like acupuncture too!