2003 American Holistic Veterinary Conference healing animals & ourselves

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients,  Jan, 2004  by Jule Klotter

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The September 2003 American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association (AHVMA) Annual Conference in Durham, North Carolina, proved that alternative and complementary therapies are benefiting animals as well as humans. Founded in 1982, by Carvel G. Tickert, DVM and a small group of veterinarians, AHVMA has pioneered the exploration of alternative and complementary health care for animals. The 2003 conference offered introductory sessions in veterinary holistic practice, acupuncture, chiropractic, homeopathy, nutraceuticals, herbal medicine, physiotherapy, various kinds of body therapy and massage (i.e., Bowen therapy, craniosacral, equine massage), Ayurvedic Medicine, equine dentistry, mistletoe extract, homeotoxocology, and advanced sessions in Chinese medicine. In addition, the Veterinary Botanical Medicine Association (www.vbma.org) presented two days of seminars with herbalists Kerry Bone, BSc., Barbara Fougere, BMSc, Greg Tilford, and Robert Silver, DVM and offered its Herbal Medicine Certification Exam. The Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy (www.TheAVH.org) also offered a day of advanced sessions in homeopathic theory and practice with Larry Bernsteing, VMD, and Lori Tapp, DVM, as part of the conference.

Marty Becker, DVM, co-author of The Healing Power of Pets, kicked off AHVMA's conference with his keynote talk about the human-animal bond and research into its healing effects. He believes that affection bonds with animals have strengthened and gained importance in our society because relationships with other people and connections with community have weakened. Companion animals are taking on the role of "life support systems." Unlike people harried by schedules and cell phones, animals respond with enthusiasm when a human friend seeks a companion for a walk in the park or returns home. When animals connect, they give and receive love unconditionally, attending to the present moment. Such loving interaction with another creature has tremendous healing power, as science is validating.

Dr. Becker cited many studies about the benefits of animal-human interaction during his talk. Having a strong connection to an animal helps people overcome depression, deal with anxiety, and relieve stress. The greater the physical and emotional intimacy with a pet, the greater the healing power. In one study involving 392 people, Erika Friedman at the University of Maryland Hospital found that people were eight times more likely to be alive a year after a heart attack if they had a pet. Medical researcher Karen Allen of State University of New York--Buffalo studied the effect of pet ownership on stress and blood pressure. She recruited 48 New York stockbrokers with high blood pressure who lived alone. During stress tests, (i.e., counting backward from 17 and trying to talk oneself out of shoplifting charge), their blood pressure rose from an average resting rate of 165/110 to 183/126, according to Dr. Becker's book. Dr. Allen randomly instructed half of the stockbrokers to get a dog or cat. When the 48 subjects took a stress test six months later, the pet owners' blood pressure increased only half as much as the non-owners'.

In addition to decreasing stress levels, pets keep people moving, increase social interaction, and encourage a daily routine. The bond fulfills the need to love and be loved, and it also promotes relaxation. Relaxation reduces pain. Over 50 pet-people Animal-Assisted Therapy teams work with staff at NIH's Recreational Therapy Department. As part of the therapy team, these animals, with the support of their human caretakers, provide a respite from the depression, anxiety, and pain that can accompany rehabilitation. Sometimes a dog takes an active role in physical therapy by taking walks with a patient or by retrieving a patient's thrown balls or simply by being brushed by someone regaining use of an injured arm. Recognizing that bonding with a dog, cat, or bird can help their elderly, chronically-ill, and mentally-ill patients, some physicians write prescriptions for a pet to convince landlords to waive restrictive rules. Seniors with pets report 50% fewer health problems. Dr. Becker reported that the benefit of the animal-human bond is mutual. Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia found that stroking a dog for about 3 minutes caused a release of "feel-good" biochemicals like oxytocin and prolactin in both human and dog. Dr. Becker suspects that petting a cat has the same effect but studies are lacking.

Mary Becker said, "The better we take care of the animals, the better they take care of us." Cindy Lankenau's talk on "Holistic Food Animal Medicine" brought another dimension to those words. Dr. Lankenau practices veterinary medicine among the dairy farmers near Colden, New York. She said that in order to get a non-toxic food chain, we have to heal the Earth. Holistic veterinarians are at the forefront of this movement because they can provide preventive animal health education and non-toxic solutions to farm animal care. Good hygiene, good ventilation, good water provide the basis for any creature's health, including animals that provide us with food. When problems do occur, such as mastitis, Dr. Lankenau relies on homeopathy, acupuncture, and herbs. She admitted that some of her clients use her services because it costs less than conventional drugs, not because they believe in holistic medicine. Many dairy farmers in her area suffer from heavy economic and family pressures, so she also dispenses Western Australian flower essences to ease the farmers' stress, depression, and frustration. The health of a country's farmers and the land and animals they steward affects everyone.