How to Find a Good Holistic Vet For Your Cat
Finding a good veterinarian can be a bit of a challenge. This fact holds true when you are looking for a holistic vet as well. Of course, your pet’s health is of paramount importance to you. For this reason, you will want to find the best medical care and preventative treatment possible. Just as you want to exercise preventative care for your own health and that of your family, you will want to do the same for your pet.
So what is a holistic veterinarian anyhow? In general, this type of doctor will seek to apply natural treatments to your cat’s healthcare whenever possible. This may include treatments like acupuncture, homeopathy, and chiropractic work.
With a holistic vet, you are likely to get a different perspective on the number of shots that are required as well as a unique philosophy on the importance of a wide variety of medications as well. In general, you can rely upon holistic vets to provide you with different perspectives and opinions over traditional veterinarians.
Cats have special needs and problems, such as kidney problems and renal failure issues. A holistic vet may have solid recommendations as to what you can do to address, delay or avoid these types of significant problems. For example, many of these veterinarians will focus on improving a cat’s diet and nutrition. In fact, a great deal of holistic vets recommend offering cats the raw food diet.
Clearly, it is best to research and find a holistic vet long before there are any problems with your cat. In this way you can take your time, do your research and make sure that the vet you are considering is the right pick for you, your cat and your needs.
However, if you haven’t found your holistic vet ahead of time, don’t panic. The Internet is an amazing and effective tool. It will allow you to research your prospective veterinarian in a variety of ways. Of course, you can start by doing a simple Google search for the name of your city and “holistic veterinarian.”
Once you have found a potential doctor, one of the best ways to learn more is to simply visit the veterinarian’s website and explore what he or she has posted about the practice. The website should give you a good overview of the office, and it will likely include information about the doctor’s stance on key issues. It is important to get a general idea about a veterinarian’s approach towards medicine. If you are not left with a decent perspective on this issue after visiting the website, then you might be better off continuing your search elsewhere.
Trust is always a key issue when it comes to medical care. Whether you are looking for medical care for yourself, your family or your trusted furry friends, the fact remains that you want to have the best medical care possible. Web research can go a long way towards answering questions about where your potential holistic vet stands. Many people will post information about their experiences online on websites like Yelp and Citysearch. You may or may not want to factor these opinions into your decision making process. The good news is that you have this information at your disposal either way.
Of course, another way to find a good veterinarian for your cat is to ask your friends and family members for their opinions. Even if your friends don’t own cats, they may have friends who do. Often it is best to learn about medical professionals is through those who have firsthand experience with them.
A core part of your research into finding a holistic vet should be to visit the websites of professional organizations. One such organization is AHVMA or the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association (www.ahvma.org). The AHVMA is a deep resource that outlines what holistic veterinary medicine looks like, what you can expect, how you can learn more on the subject. They also provide information about where you can find holistic vets in your region that are in good standing with the association. In short, the AHVMA is a significant resource that is worthy of attention and exploration.
A service of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association is their AHVMA Member Referral Search, which can be found at www.ahvma.org/. This thorough and useful list is broken down by specialties, ranging from acupuncture and chiropractic to nutrition. For those with a sick cat who are in need of immediate help, this website may serve as a very useful tool and one that is well worth exploring.
The fact is that a holistic vet may take a more comprehensive approach to the care of your animal than many traditional veterinarians do. As a result, if you can locate this type of veterinarian, it is an exceptional way to practice preventative care for your pets. If you are curious about the treatment that your cat would receive with a holistic veterinarian, it is worth at least taking the time to meet with one to learn more about his or her approach.
Having discovered a fondness for insects while pursuing her degree in Biology, Randi Jones was quite bugged to know that people usually dismissed these little creatures as “creepy-crawlies”.