Dr. Sara Skiwski is a Holistic Vet, which means that not only is she a licensed veterinarian, she is also trained in herbs and acupuncture for pets. She shared with me an interesting case about one of her patients, Spring, who at the time of treatment was a 3 year old female tabby. Spring’s case was interesting to me because she had begun urinating in every room of the house, especially the baby’s room. This started about the same time her owners had a new baby and also moved to a new home, which is similar to what my situation will be. The last thing I need when the baby arrives is for Furball to start peeing everywhere!!!
Spring’s family naturally made sure to rule out any physical causes for her inappropriate urination. She was checked for UTI and also had her blood tested, but nothing significant was found. She was given a couple of medications to try, but these didn’t help. Her owners also worked with a behaviorist, but this didn’t help either.
When Dr. Skiwski first met Spring, she noticed that the cat was “chatty” and “pacing/searching” when outside of her carrier. She also observed, “Nose was dry, tongue observed when mewing- red/dry. Teeth mild dental tartar and gingivitis. Pulses R>L- choppy, with deficiency in 1st L side mostly. Fur- a little dry and shedding a lot.” The stuff about Spring’s pulses is Chinese medicine speak :).
Based on her examination, Dr. Skiwski recommended an herbal medicine for Spring and also gave her an acupuncture treatment. In a follow-up visit two weeks later, Spring was doing a little bit better. She was still urinating in some rooms, but at least not all of them. She was also less restless at night. Dr. Skiwski gave Spring another acupuncture treatment.
Two week later, there was more improvement. Spring had stopped peeing in all of the rooms except for the baby’s room and she only did that when the door was left open. Dr. Skiwski gave Spring another acupuncture treatment and recommended that Spring continue with the herbal medicine.
In a follow-up a month later, Spring only had one accident and she was also more relaxed at home. She received another acupuncture treatment and kept up with the herbal medicine. At a 2 month follow-up, Spring was doing so well that she no longer had any accidents in the house. Spring would also join the family when the baby was playing in the room. She received another acupuncture treatment and her herbal medicine dosage was reduced in half.
At the 4 month recheck, unfortunately Spring had a relapse when the family ran out of the herbal medicine. Dr. Skiwski gave the cat an acupuncture treatment and put her back on the herbal medicine. Success! The family followed Dr. Skiwski’s recommendations and reported that Spring stopped urinating inappropriately even when they moved again a few years later.
I found this case really interesting because the traditional western approach of medication didn’t help. Even a behaviourist failed to alter Spring’s behaviour. However, the combination of herbs and acupuncture seemed to do the trick. It just goes to show that you can use acupuncture to treat a host of issues, not just pain. In Spring’s case, this treatment helped improve her mental state of mind, which resulted in a positive change in her behaviour. The same thing applies to us humans too. Of course, hopefully you’re not urinating inappropriately! 😉
If you’re looking for a Holistic Vet for your cat or dog and you live in Northern California, I’d highly recommend Dr. Sara Skiwski. Her website is: www.thewesterndragon.com