AcuMed Veterinary Specialty - Our 1st Anniversary - Yearbook

AcuMed Veterinary Specialty was founded a year ago with the purpose of Integrating the principles of Acupuncture and Conventional Medicine.
We have extracted the principles from both conventional and oriental medicine and thus have been treating our patients with both conventional medicine and acupuncture,depending on what's best for them.
Here's what we did last year.


Brain & Spinal diseases : We've encountered over 50 Brain and 150 Spinal disease cases. We've been diagnosing numerous Brain tumors, Meningioencephalitis, Vestibular dieases,Epilepsy and numerous Spinal cord diseases with the help of MRI and have been able to help many animals.
We've helped numerous Paralyzed dogs & cats walk again.

Pain Management : Our motto has always been managing Pain with all possible modalities. We've developed protocols to manage them in the best possible way. We routinely treat severe osteo-arthritis cases , Hip joint diseases, Spondylosis, Neck pain cases. We also treat old age patients who have severe pain due to degenerative joint changes,but cannot be on long term NSAID's due to their side effects. Acupuncture works best for them.

Lectures & Workshops : We were invited to Parbhani Veterinary College last year and had conducted a lecture for the budding veterinarians, post graduate students and staff. We had a great time interacting with the audience while conducting the workshop.http://drprathmeshdvet.blogspot.in/2012/05/integrating-acupuncture-into-veterinary.html

Interesting Cases : We've had the chance to treat the "White Peacock" at the Mumbai zoo and the "White Tigress" at the Pune zoo.

Media : We were covered in an article in Hindustan times after treating the White Peacock.https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=324115694340057&set=a.322895411128752.76872.322679151150378&type=1&theater

We would like to thank all our supporters for encouraging us to do so many things. We wish to do much more this year.
AcuMed Veterinary Specialty

Veterinary Acupuncture - Gypsy the White Tigress ! AcuMed Veterinary Specialty

One of the most memorable,breathtaking experience of my life. Had been called to see the 16 year old White tigress - Gypsy at the Pune zoo a couple of weeks ago.

Gypsy suffered from an acute onset of paraplegia. She could not lift her hindquarters. Then I stepped in along with the Zoo Vet and his treatment crew with Gypsy wide awake without any sedation.
She turned around her head and we acknowledged each other by that brief eye contact. Due to that brief illness she had lost muscle mass and was in her terminal stage. I was then asked, could Acupuncture help, I said, why not. So started with the treatment focusing on giving her pain relief and also try and stimulate the spinal nerves. Pain was immediately taken care of and Gypsy fell asleep after 15 minutes while the treatment was on..
Gypsy however continued to be in a similar state for the next couple of days,but unfortunately she could not come out of it.She passed away.It was found out,she suffered from brain stroke.
A special thanks to Dr.Nighot, the zoo veterinarian, I really appreciate the efforts that he took for Gypsy and treated her like his own pet.
I felt happy for the fact that i could give her some amount of pain relief in her terminal stages.

Veterinary Acupuncture for Paralysis - Lalu : AcuMed Veterinary Specialty

People who rescued him named him Lalu, because of the reddish hue over his coat.

He was spotted ,lying on a roadside, possibly a road accident case.
He was brought in and received medical attention. He could not life his hindlegs, lost control over urine and his back was painful,possibly post trauma.
He received a good Pain management and a short session of Acupuncture.

After one week, he was now able to stand up when assisted,but still control over urine was not regained. We continued treating him, he started improving by the passing day.
At the end of 6 weeks , he could now stand up unassisted and walk with a fairly good gait. He had regained control over his urine and his bedsore also had almost healed.

Recognizing Early Signs Of Spinal Cord Disorders - AcuMed Veterinary Specialty

We encounter numerous Spinal cord diseases everyday. We have found that diagnosing the Spinal diseases in its early stages can help prevent further worsening of symptoms. In this article we briefly try and demonstrate some simplified concepts and most common signs & symptoms that can be easily noticed by Pet owners and thus help prevent further Neurological dysfunction. 

Changes in Behavior : 

• Some Spinal diseases are associated with pain, docile pets become aggressive/whine when suddenly lifted and may even try to bite.
• Some show marked depression and fatigue due to the pain and are reluctant to move.

Changes in Posture : 

• One needs a keen eye to spot this one. 
• Lowered neck position.
• Arched back.
• Trembling while standing.

Knuckling / Proprioceptive loss - The "CARDINAL SIGN":

As shown in the above pictures, loss of proprioception is evident which in simple terms can be described as knuckling. This can be evident while standing or dragging of legs will be seen in a similar manner.

Changes in Gait / Walk & Loss of Balance: 

•  This can be appreciated while the pet is walking on a non-slippery surface like a hard ground or in a garden.
• A keen eye can spot the change in style of walks, disoriented gait, excessive swaying of the back. Some people even describe it as a "Drunken Gait".

Paraparesis & Paraplegia / Partial and Complete paralysis :

• Inability to support the hind legs, or all the four legs.
• Loss of function of hind legs.
• Loss of control over urine and stools along with inability to get up.

AcuMed Veterinary Specialty : Veterinary Acupuncture : Rover's Story

A very unusual case was presented to us.

Rover ,a 4 month old Labrador who had an episode of Gastroenteritis a month before he came to us , now developed contractures of the hind leg muscles and tendons along with neurological deficits and hence he could not stand up or walk.
The owners said, he was extremely depressed as he was a very playful Labrador and used to feel sad when he couldn't join his other friends in the playground.

The prognosis of him able to walk again with the disability was not too great and he would have to spend his entire life this way.
The same question was put up, " Can Acupuncture be used to do something for him"
We said, the structural deformities cannot be corrected ,but
"We could Help".

We started treating him with Acupuncture and Physiotherapy trying to Rehabilitate him.

After a 3 weeks the pain had gone away and he was then able to stand on his own for a brief period of 30-45 seconds. We took it as a positive sign and continued with our therapy.

Within 5 weeks he was now able to walk.
The owners kept up with some simple physio exercises.

We saw him now after a span of 4 months .. He is now able to walk and run around with his friends.. 
The contracture of muscles and tendons still remain as a disability and the deformity can be obviously be noted, but he still manages to do everything like all his Labrador friends do.. that too without pain.. 

We are happy we could help Rover and provide him a better quality of life...

Rover showed us the power of mind over matter and reminded us of the great quote by Scott Hamilton,
"The Only Disability in Life .. Is a Bad Attitude.."

AcuMed Veterinary Specialty- Veterinary Acupuncture for Cats : Dewey !

Dewey - Instilled the belief in us that Cats indeed do have 9 lives.

Dewey was paralyzed and was lying at one of the corners and was rescued by a kindhearted gentleman . He volunteered to take care of her and later adopted her. Upon examination we found that she was paralyzed by her hindlegs and had lost control over her urine. A radiograph was taken, showed reduction in vertebral size,but was inconclusive. A CT scan was then performed which revealed a fracture of the vertebrae and a rotatory subluxation.. With a lesion so severe the prognosis was guarded to poor.
We were requested to start with the treatment and thus we started her on Acupuncture.

With a lesion so severe the recovery was indeed going to be very gradual. She first was able to bear weight on her legs. Then slowly started taking a few steps , then walking with an ataxic/ inco-ordinated  gait . The ataxia then reduced and she was able to walk in a more co-ordinated way.

A Video showing her progress , For all the students interested in Neurological Rehabilitation, this shows a few stages:




 It was a perfect combination of Compassion, Veterinary Care , Pet-parent Compliance  Patience which helped Dewey on her road to recovery.