Large Animal

Integrative Medicine

We take a comprehensive approach to care for your pets, livestock, and equine animals through integrative medicine in Potlatch, ID.

What Is Integrative Medicine?

Integrative medicine brings together the best of conventional veterinary treatments, such as surgery and pharmaceuticals, with holistic therapies, including acupuncture, herbal treatments, and laser therapy. This approach allows us to treat both the symptoms and the underlying causes of health conditions, ensuring that your animals receive the most effective care possible.

We believe that each animal is unique, and their treatment should reflect that. Our team works closely with you to develop personalized care plans that meet your animal’s specific health needs. Whether it’s managing chronic pain, recovering from surgery, or supporting long-term wellness, integrative medicine can provide valuable tools for promoting health and healing.

A person gently pets a pig

Services Offered at Potlatch Veterinary Clinic

Our integrative medicine services at Potlatch Veterinary Clinic are designed to complement conventional veterinary care. These services can be used as standalone treatments or in combination with standard medical therapies to enhance outcomes and improve overall quality of life. Some of the key integrative services we offer include:

Laser Therapy

Laser therapy is a non-invasive treatment that uses light energy to reduce pain and inflammation, promote healing, and improve mobility. This therapy is especially beneficial for conditions such as arthritis, post-surgical recovery, wounds, and chronic infections. By stimulating the body’s natural healing processes, laser therapy helps reduce discomfort and accelerate recovery without the need for medications.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is an ancient practice that involves the insertion of thin needles into specific points on the body to promote healing and restore balance. This therapy can be particularly effective for managing pain, improving circulation, and supporting the immune system. Our veterinarians use acupuncture as part of a broader treatment plan to help animals with chronic pain, neurological issues, and other conditions.

Herbal Therapy

Herbal therapy involves the use of natural plant-based remedies to support overall health and treat specific conditions. Many animals can benefit from the addition of herbal treatments to their care, especially for managing chronic conditions like allergies, digestive issues, and skin problems. We work with you to determine the most appropriate herbal solutions for your animal’s needs, ensuring that they receive safe and effective treatments.

Benefits of Integrative Medicine

Integrative medicine offers numerous benefits for animals at all stages of life. By combining conventional treatments with holistic therapies, we can:

  • Provide more comprehensive care that addresses the root causes of health problems
  • Reduce reliance on medications and their potential side effects
  • Improve recovery times after surgery or injury
  • Manage chronic conditions more effectively
  • Support long-term wellness and prevent future health issues

This approach is especially valuable for animals with complex medical needs or those who are not responding well to traditional treatments. Integrative medicine allows us to offer more options for care, giving you and your animal the best chance for a healthy, happy life.

Acupuncture

What is acupuncture?

Acupuncture is the placement of very small/thin needles into the skin at specific points. These specific points are called acupuncture points and have been mapped along the body of many animal species. Acupuncture points are often at locations that have a high density of nerve fibers, vessels, or fascia. Acupuncture originated in China thousands of years ago and has been used since to treat many different conditions.

What conditions can acupuncture help treat?

Acupuncture provides benefits for many conditions in animals. Some of the most common conditions that acupuncture is used for are pain, arthritis, and soreness especially in aging pets. However, acupuncture can be helpful for so many more conditions. Some examples include, but are not limited to, neurological disorders such as intervertebral disc disease, gastrointestinal disorders such as diarrhea, and stimulating wound healing. Acupuncture has also been shown to have beneficial effects on certain reproductive, cardiovascular, respiratory, and skin conditions.

What animals can receive acupuncture?

Any! Acupuncture points have been mapped out on most domestic animal species. The first animals to have the acupuncture points mapped were horses and dogs. From there acupuncture maps were made for most other species.

How do I get started?

If you are interested in pursuing acupuncture treatment for your animal, please contact Potlatch Veterinary Clinic at (208) 875-4838. First, we will schedule you an initial acupuncture consultation/treatment with our acupuncturist, Dr. Lillian McKinley. This initial acupuncture appointment includes a full history and examination of your pet; as well as a full Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) history and examination for Dr. McKinley to fully evaluate your animal from both a Western and Eastern medicine perspective. Next during this initial acupuncture appointment, Dr. McKinley will see how your animal reacts to acupuncture needle placement and do the first acupuncture treatment session.

Following the initial acupuncture consultation/treatment, if acupuncture is right for your pet, additional acupuncture treatments can be scheduled based on your animal’s unique needs. Most commonly, weekly acupuncture treatments are recommended for 4-6 weeks. This is because acupuncture is thought to have cumulative effects and sessions build on each other. After the first 4-6 weeks of treatment, the treatment frequency is adjusted to best fit your pet’s unique needs. At Potlatch Veterinary Clinic we offer acupuncture packages or individual session pricing to fit your needs and your schedule. Give us a call if you think acupuncture can help your animal,(208) 875-4838.

How does acupuncture work?

Acupuncture works with the body to heal itself using its natural physiological processes. Acupuncture works to return the body to a balanced state. From our Western medicine standpoint, acupuncture stimulates nerves, increases blood flow and circulation, relieves muscle spasms, and stimulates hormone release to help the body perform a variety of natural functions. Many of the effects of acupuncture have been studied and shown beneficial results, however, acupuncture has been used to treat so many conditions for so long that there are many effects that are still unknown and research will continually be performed.

How well do animals tolerate acupuncture? Is it painful?

Most animals tolerate acupuncture well, and it is typically not painful. However, some acupuncture points are sensitive, and animals can occasionally respond to this sensitivity. Also, uncommonly there can be sensitivity when the needle goes through the skin, after the needle is in place there should be virtually no pain.

If, for whatever reason, a specific animal does not tolerate acupuncture needles well, a therapeutic laser can be used to stimulate the acupuncture points instead. This is termed laser acupuncture, and is also a service that we offer at Potlatch Veterinary Clinic.

Meet our Acupuncturist!

Dr. Lillian McKinley is our certified veterinary acupuncturist at Potlatch Vet Clinic. She is a graduate of Washington State University, and is a certified veterinary acupuncturist. Dr. McKinley did her acupuncture training with the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society and is certified in both small and large animal acupuncture.

Veterinary Services in Potlatch, ID