Acupuncture is a branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that has been expertly adapted for use in veterinary patients with profound success. Acupuncture taps into the body’s own regulating and healing mechanisms and strives to achieve balance where there is imbalance and relieve energy blockages (Qi) which cause pain, poor health, and poor performance.
There are a number of different styles of acupuncture but the purest form is called “dry needling,” simply the placement of thin, solid needles into specific points in the body to stimulate blood flow and the release of powerful regulating and pain modulating chemical mediators. This stimulation also causes beneficial feedback stimulation of the nervous system. Electroacupuncture utilizes low voltage electricity of varying frequency which is then connected to the needles to deliver a powerful, effective treatment. Electroacupuncture is particularly effective in treating back pain and other muscular conditions as well as neuropathies because of it’s enhanced pain mediator release and strong neuro-feedback. Aquapuncture involves the injection of therapeutic substances such as vitamin B12 into specific acupuncture points to achieve a longer lasting treatment.
Because it works with the body, acupuncture has virtually no side effects and can be used to decrease dependence on medications commonly used to relieve pain, inflammation or muscle spasm. Acupuncture can also be applied in an integrative fashion with regular, clinical veterinary medicine to increase treatment response and to achieve and maintain peak performance in all equine athletes.
North Bridge Equine offers complete acupuncture services to our clients. The first evaluation will include a thorough acupuncture examination as well as evaluation of the horse in motion in order develop a treatment plan tailored to your horse’s specific needs. Most horses and riders notice a significant improvement in the horse’s suppleness and comfort within the first 1-2 treatments. That being said, as acupuncture utilizes, optimizes, and resets the body’s own homeostasis, the process typically takes longer on the whole. For this reason we recommend a series of three treatments to achieve optimal results. Later appointments are focused on maintenance and strengthening of these positive trends as well as addressing any specific concerns that may have arisen since the last treatment.
