Christopher Day is a holistic vet and acupuncture vet with more than 37 years of experience in natural and holistic medicine. He has been using veterinary acupuncture (acupuncture for animals) for more than 27 years.

The main benefits of acupuncture for animals are:

1.  Acupuncture can relieve pain, via the release of endorphins (morphine-like endogenous opioid chemicals, which are the body's natural pain-killers and anti-stress messengers). This is particularly useful when an animal suffers acute neck pain or back pain but is also beneficial in the treatment of chronic pain.

2.  Veterinary acupuncture can stimulate the body's own healing and defence mechanisms.

3.  Vet acupuncture can offer an alternative to drug medication, thus avoiding drug side-effects.

4.  Acupuncture can offer the veterinary acupuncturist alternative therapeutic possibilities, when drug medicine or surgery may have failed.

5.  Acupuncture is well-tolerated or even enjoyed by most animal patients.

Acupuncture has survived thousands of years, a true 'test of time' and yet is still used as first-line medicine for a large percentage of the human population of the world. It is gaining in popularity, in the West, as a result of disillusionment with drug side-effects, the continuing prevalence of chronic, painful and debilitating disease and the sense of well-being that can be induced by this gentle form of therapy. This is true of acupuncture in animals, just as much as for humans.

"As a veterinary surgeon who joined the profession out of a genuine wish to improve the lot of animals in human care, I have found that acupuncture has widened my horizons and enabled me to do so much more for my patients than I coud before I took up this work." - Christopher Day

For more information on Veterinary Acupuncture and supportive holistic therapies, see the links provided to the right and below.