What your holistic kitty needs is a holistic vet

I’ve stressed earlier my East-meets-West philosophy of medicine. Therefore, I truly believe that to have a healthy happy cat you must have a good vet! Annual check-ups are very important and part of a holistic regimen of a healthy cat - focusing on the body. I strongly urge people to develop a relationship with their vet and to also be very vocal about your philosophy towards keeping your cat healthy. This includes alternative medicine choices, diet choices, and most importantly, your ethical choices. This should be done up front and often. I’ve found that vets often want to exert their will (they’re the experts!) and can also be intimidating. They went to school to learn all about your cat’s anatomy - what do you know?! You have your beliefs and what you know is that you have your cat’s whole interest (holistic!) in mind: body, mind, and spirit. Keep that with you always when they insist they know what’s best for your cat, but you have that little nagging doubt inside of you. Unless you are in an emergency situation you can always STOP … and let them know you need time to think about any decision you’ll be making about your cat’s health. From flea meds … to steroid use. I say STOP. Think. Research. Then decide.

Choosing a vet can be tricky. There are lots of great sites as we know to help make those decisions. A couple of obvious choices being Yelp, http://www.yelp.com/, and Angie’s List, http://www.angieslist.com/research/veterinarians/. The most important one I want to tell you about (and the one I’m most excited about) is the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, http://www.ahvma.org/find-a-holistic-veterinarian/ This is a great place to find the perfect vet that also shares an East-meets-West philosophy of medicine.

Don’t fret if you can’t find a holistic vet near you. When you find a place for consideration, talk to the receptionist when making your appointment and let them know what you expect to get from the visit. As a reminder, it is important to be very vocal about letting your new vet know you prefer alternative holistic medical choices if/when available. If they act strangely regarding this request or if you sense hesitation I would stop and look elsewhere. You absolutely must have a relationship with your vet based on mutual trust and respect which includes your choice of treating your little furry family member with healthy alternative medicines when appropriate. You want them on board with you when you make those decisions. Do not, do not, do not wait for a health crisis to let your vet know how you feel about certain treatments or alternative medical choices. You don’t want to clash at this crucial time when the pressure’s on to make decisions. This is what happened with Spot and I … and the reason I started this blog. To help those learn what I have learned too late. I gave into the pressure of my non-holistic all-drug philosophies of my past vet. Though I knew deep down … it just didn’t feel right. Especially with my background in holistic health medicine.

So, to recap. STOP (and research). Don’t make rash decisions in non-emergency situations. Choose a vet that shares your views towards medicine. Establish a relationship of mutual trust and respect. Most of all, be vocal, up front and often, about your alternative medicine choices.