To receive a copy of this infographic, please email patrick@patrickmahaney.com
Do you take a holistic approach to your pet’s health? Do you know what holistic medicine actually involves? As my veterinary practice always evaluate my patients' health issues from a holistic perspective, this topic is very important to me.
Recently, I participated in Twitter chat on behalf of Pet360 and to discuss such topics for National Holistic Pet Day (8/30/12).
For those of you new to the Twitter format, the ‘hashtag’ (#) indicates a thread of topic that can be followed or sought out through a simple search. Our chat was specifically designated by #holisticpet. The '@' symbol identifies an individual or organization; @PatrickMahaney, @Pet360, and @HonestKitchen were the administrators of the chat.
What follows are @Pet360’s questions and my responses. Interspersed throughout our Q/A were many questions and conversations from other pet owning participants in the #holisticpet chat, which can be found by searching #holisticpet on Twitter or using Hootsuite/Tweedeck.
Check out the bottom of this article for the infographic The Honest Kitchen and I created for this event. Enjoy!
@Pet360 Q1: So @PatrickMahaney, what exactly is #holistic #pet medicine? #holisticpet
@PatrickMahaney A1: Holistic medicine (for pets & people) is that which addresses entire body instead of just an individual part. #holisticpet
@Pet360 Q2: Does foo/diet play a role and if so, how? #holisticpet
@PatrickMahaney A2: @Pet360 Food plays a crucial role in animal health regardless of life stage, but especially for geriatric & sick pets. #holisticpet
@Pet360 Q3: @PatrickMahaney are there any health conditions that can be caused by poor diet? #holisticpet
@PatrickMahaney A3: Yes, a variety of health conditions can be cause by poor diet. #holisticpet
and A3: ...and diabetes (in cats, due to obesity), pancreatitis (dogs & cats), etc. All $$$ diseases to treat!! #holisticpet
@Pet360 Q4: Where can I find a vet who uses holistic medicine?
@PatrickMahaney A4: To find a #holistic #veterinarian, please refer to the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association (AHVMA) webpage #holisticpet
@Pet360 Thank you so much @PatrickMahaney and @HonestKitchen and everyone for participating! #holisticpet
@PatrickMahaney My pleasure! Anything to promote better dog & cat health through nutrition!
As part of Pet360’s administrative board, I will be participating in more Twitter chats in the upcoming months with topics yet to be determined. Keep any eye out on my @PatrickMahaney Twitter and Patrick Mahaney, Veterinarian: Acupuncture Pain Management for Your Pets Facebook pages.
Copyright of this article (2012) is owned by Dr Patrick Mahaney, Veterinarian and Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist. Republishing any portion of this article must first be authorized by Dr Patrick Mahaney. Requests for republishing must be approved by Dr Patrick Mahaney and received in written format.