How, When, Where to Begin Using Holistic Care

by Deborah C. Mallu, D.V.M.

For those of you who’ve had little exposure to alternative healing modalities, the new and sometimes controversial information may be overwhelming. I have been on the path of holistic medicine for several years and wish to share with you ways you can gently incorporate this new information into your lives.

Holistic Care: Body, Mind and Spirit
Adjust your thinking to accept all three aspects of healing. Holistic care encompasses healing of the Body, Mind and Spirit. Your pet’s physical condition incorporates the Body aspect. The Mind aspect is assessed through your insight along with the observation of your pet’s astuteness. The Spirit aspect of healing is brought forth by desire and the emotional dynamics between you and your companion animal.

Communicate with your pet
As you progress along the path of holistic care, you will come to realize you are connected and communicating with your companion animal. This is not a special psychic ability. We all have this inherent ability because we all are connected: our thoughts and actions affect every other being. Trust yourself. Trust the information you receive. Our companion animals are spirit beings sharing their teaching us unconditional love and how to live in a state of being.

Reflecting Imbalance
Explore the possibility that your pet’s disease (imbalance) has a component you need to address. I do not feel the animals “take on our stuff.” Rather, I have learned by observation and communication that animals will mirror or reflect areas of imbalance, physical or emotional, that their person may need to address in their own healing. How many times have you found your diagnosis or medicine is the same as your pet’s? I have noticed remarkable if not miraculous breakthroughs when these underlying connections of imbalance are recognized.

Healing Empowerment
Holistic healing requires a team approach. Your veterinarian is just one member of the healing team. The rest of the team includes your pet, you, family, possibly veterinary specialists, and other natural health therapists, all connecting with the healer within. Honor your pet by knowing that healing does not always mean cure. Healing may mean making a transition. Be aware and open.

A Perspective Shift
As a veterinarian we are trained to find out what is wrong with our patients and to give the prognosis of all that is wrong. Many of my clients come with devastating diagnoses and prognoses. After reviewing the history and before I examine the patient, I speak to my client about shifting our perspective to a more positive one, thus, allowing more possibilities. Yet, we are realistic knowing that in some cases the patient will probably die soon. Rather than wait in fear, why not get up each day and look at your companion and say, “How wonderful, we have another day together.”

Create A Healing Environment
Walk around your home. Is it calming and joyful? Is there clutter to cause stagnate energy and emotional imbalance? Study the colors and lighting, so important in affecting your mood and energy field. Does your pet choose certain colors and shy away from other colors of bedding, toys, and furniture. Your pet’s healing may be enhanced through light and color therapy healing. Remember to check your home for safety.

Healer Thy Self
Healing demands clarity and balance. Our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual balance affect our companion animals. As you explore holistic care, do so for yourself as well.

Dr. Deborah Mallu, is holistic veterinarian based in Sedona, Arizona. Her practice is limited to patients with chronic and so-called incurable diseases. This article is based on her presentation at the 1997 American Holistic Veterinarian Medical Association Conference.

Exam Dimensions
You may be amazed at what the physical body can tell you, if you begin to look at it in terms of a template for the energy field. Use the physical body as a landscape for the energy field. A dip in the spine may be a sign of blockage or deficiency of energy flow in this area. Areas where the hair coat has an unusual swirl may be a sign of imbalance.

• Check your pet’s gait or movement.
  
• Notice symmetry and balance, side to side and front to back.
  
• Feel for areas of heat or cold or sensitivity to light or deep touch.
  
• Check the head and mouth, the bony and muscular structure.
  
• Run your hands over the body and about one inch off the body. In time you will notice differences in sensation of the energy field surrounding your pet.

© PetSage 2000