5 Common Holistic Vet Med Myths Debunked
A couple of years ago I decided it was time to leave my job as a dog daycare attendant to pursue another career in the animal field and become a vet assistant. While looking for jobs I came across a holistic veterinary clinic that was hiring, applied, and began working as a vet assistant to a holistic veterinarian. At first, I was very skeptical of everything that she practiced. At my clinic we practice homeopathy and acupuncture, we treat illnesses with essential oils, we limit vaccines as much as possible, and we promote homemade or raw diets. All of it was completely different from everything I knew about veterinary medicine through my own research and owning a dog. As time went on and I watched mast cell tumors disappear with frankincense oil, saw dogs who could hardly walk be able to run after acupuncture treatments, and witnessed horrible skin allergies be cured through a homemade diet, my mindset was completely changed.
Holistic veterinary medicine is often looked at as being ineffective, “woo woo”, and even dangerous. There are a lot of misconceptions and incorrect information floating around about holistic treatments for pets. While I was very skeptical at first, my outlook on holistic vet med has completely changed after spending the last year and a half working side by side with a holistic veterinarian. Today, I’m debunking 5 myths about holistic veterinary medicine.
1. There’s No Proof that Holistic Treatments Work
Being on “dogtok”, aka the side of Tik Tok that is full of dog owners, trainers, groomers, and vet med workers, I’ve seen so many veterinarians argue that there is no “proof” that holistic veterinary medicine works. Many traditional vets believe that because there are no legitimate studies that treatments such as raw and homemade diets or essential oils work, that it simply just doesn’t.
While clinical studies are great for testing out different medications and other treatments, they aren’t the only form of proof that something works. I have seen first hand that holistic veterinary medicine does work and there are many case studies on the internet that show that as well. It’s not just coincidence when a homemade diet clears up a dogs chronic skin issues after every allergy medication in the world didn’t work. It’s not just coincidence when ozone therapy shrinks a lymphoma patients lymph nodes after chemotherapy couldn’t. Clinical studies are great, but real life patients who were cured by holistic medicine when nothing else worked, are even better.
2. Holistic Vets are Anti-Vaccines
I can’t speak for every holistic veterinarian in the world, but it is a myth that holistic vets across the board are against vaccines. In the traditional vet world, dogs and cats of every age and lifestyle are vaccinated year after year for every illness in the world, regardless of whether or not they’re actually at risk for said illness. Holistic vets take a much more minimal approach to vaccines by creating individual vaccine routines for each animal based on their age, lifestyle, and medical history.
It’s common practice in holistic vet clinics to do yearly vaccine titers rather than yearly vaccines. This shows proof that the dog is protected for diseases such as distemper and parvo, rather than just giving them the vaccine. If a dog is already protected for a disease, there’s no need to put unnecessary chemicals into their body to further protect them.
In our clinic, we also won’t vaccinate for any illness that a dog or cat is not at risk of getting. This means we won’t give a dog who is never around other dogs a bordetella vaccine and we won’t vaccinate an indoor cat for FeLV. To sum it all up, holistic vets are not anti vaccine, but they are anti unnecessarily vaccinating or over vaccinating.
3. Holistic Medicine is “Woo Woo”
I’ll admit, a lot of holistic medication seems very “woo woo”. Homeopathy, ozone therapy, and Chinese medicine all seems very out there, different, and hard to explain when you first hear about it. However, all of these different therapies have been studied and practiced for years and most of them have been around for much longer than the traditional medications we are used to today.
The fact is, doctors that practice these therapies do so for a reason, and that reason is that it works. In America especially, we are used to drug companies pushing drugs down our throats for even the most minor illnesses. It’s what many American’s have become accustomed to, and any form of natural treatment seems silly when you could just take a pill and feel better. Holistic medication works by treating the whole problem rather than just the symptoms. It’s hard to understand and believe when you haven’t seen it work- I had a hard time believing it at first too- but once you witness an animal become fully healed through holistic therapies you won’t believe it’s “woo woo” any longer .
4. Holistic Medicine is Not Worth the Extra Cost
Holistic vet clinics are often much more expensive than traditional vets and it’s a common myth that it’s not worth the cost. Through my experience, I fully believe that it is worth the extra cost because the benefits are incredible.
As I mentioned above, holistic medicine is all about treating the entire problem rather than just the symptoms. For example, say you have a dog with horrible skin allergies. You take them to their traditional vet and they are prescribed Apoquel, an oral medication that is used for itching. It works, and your dog is no longer itchy, however your dog is now on this medication for years and when you attempt to take them off of it the itching immediately comes back. On top of that, while the itching went away, your dog now has chronic diarrhea due to a side effect of the medication and they get put on Metronidazole intermittently for that. It’s a vicious cycle where every medication treats one symptom but causes another and now your dog can’t properly function without a bunch of pills every day. With holistic medication your vet will find the root cause of the itching, which is likely due to an allergy to their food. They then can do different allergy tests and create a diet for your dog that they aren’t allergic to. While this is definitely a more expensive route to take, once on the new diet your dog is no longer itchy, all of their hair grows back, and they don’t have to deal with any medication side effects or take daily pills.
It’s more expensive because it’s the safest most efficient approach to illnesses in your pet, and it is 100% worth the extra cost.
5. Promoting Natural Pet Care is Dangerous
I see so many traditional vets and other people who don’t understand holistic medicine, say that promoting natural treatments for pets is “dangerous”. People genuinely believe that limited vaccines, fresh food diets, and natural treatments such as essential oils are dangerous for pets. This is a myth that is based on not understanding how holistic medicine works.
You should not ever attempt to treat your dog naturally (or unnaturally) without help from a licensed vet. If you aren’t given professional guidance on how to use essential oils or how to cook a balanced diet for your dog then you are at risk of causing longterm damage. However, when done correctly, natural pet care is so much healthier for our pets than pumping them full of unnecessary chemicals and unhealthy kibbles.
Have you ever used holistic veterinary medicine for your pet? What has been your experience?