I\’ve been seeing Anzu, a lovely old standard poodle, for a long time now – nearly a year. I visited him yesterday, and his mum said I could share some of his story. Many months ago, Anzu was just not right. He was flat, not wanting to play any more, and seemed depressed and withdrawn.
\”He\’s just not himself,\” His mum told me. \”Over the past week or two it seems like all the joy has been washed out of his life, he just doesn\’t have any spark in him, any get up and go. One thing I have noticed over the last month is that he seems to get tired really quickly – and he\’s lost a bit of weight, too…\”
\”Let\’s see,\” I said. \”Well – he looks flat, and his coat is really dull too. When I\’m feeling along his back, that feels ok, not much pain and stiffness like he had when I first met him. I\’d better have a listen to his heart though…\” I muttered \”Oh dear!\” to myself when I heard what was going on.
\”What\’s happening there?\” His mum\’s worried voice cut through my focus on the sounds in his chest.
\”Well – he has developed a really bad heart murmur since I last checked his heart. That means that one or more of the valves have become damaged, and instead of shutting off neatly to stop the blood flowing backwards, now the blood is squirting back when the heart contracts. This makes the noise that I can hear. That will be why he\’s not himself, he is starting to feel the symptoms of congestive heart failure.\”
\”Oh no!\” Her face fell. \”Is there much we can do to help him feel better?\”
\”Yes, there is,\” I reassured her. \”I\’d like to get him onto some heart medicine- one tablet to help the heart muscle contract more strongly, and another tablet, a diuretic to help clear the fluid out of his body. Because his heart isn\’t pumping very well, fluid will tend to collect either in his tummy cavity, or in his lungs.\”
So – we put Anzu onto his treatment schedule, and I saw him pretty regularly for checkups over a couple of months. He improved initially, and then started to gently slide again. Several months later things were not going so well at all.
\”I\’m really worried about him – he\’s been coughing a bit, and last week i forgot to give him the diuretic tablets for a couple of days, and then he had a really bad night. I thought it was the end! And he\’s only playing the smallest bit before he gets tired and stops.\”
\”Let me have a listen to his heart,\” I said. I put the stethoscope on his chest, and my heart fell. \”It\’s much worse today… It sounds like a spastic washing machine in there – his heart is bounding nearly out of his chest, and it\’s racing nine to the dozen as well. He\’s got quite a lot of fluid buildup in his tummy, and I can see that his breathing is really laboured too. In fact, the murmur has gotten so bad that I can actually feel the thrill of it with my fingers from the outside of his chest.\”
\”Oh Dear…\” The words faded into a quietly sad silence. \”So What do we do now then?\” she asked. \”Is it fair to keep him going?\”
\”I just did an acupressure course for dogs last week, \” I answered. I have not used acupressure for heart failure ever before, but I\’d really like to give it ago. I know the diuretics tend to make him a little bit incontinent, but I want to edge the dose of that up a fraction too. Then we will see how he responds.\”
\”I definitely want to give him every chance,\” his mum told me. \”We have the new puppies now, and it would be great if he\’s around for long enough to share his wisdom with the one I\’m keeping.\”
I selected the acupressure points I felt would help most, we did the session, and I asked his mum to change his diet to all cooked food to help support his chi, or energy. I rolled off down the road, hoping like mad that this would help. The next week, when I came back to do the next session, his mum was so excited!
\”He\’s a different dog! He has been playing like a mad thing with the puppies, and he\’s back to his wonderful self,\” she told me.
I could see the difference quite clearly – he had the glint of life back in his eye, and his coat had more shine too! His breathing was easier, and his heart felt so different – it wasn\’t bounding so hard it felt like it might burst at any moment, and was beating much more slowly. He had even put a bit of weight on.
We did acupressure sessions weekly for a while, and then throttled them back to about fortnightly. I went back to see him yesterday. He has improved even more with the follow up sessions. His breathing is easier. His tummy isn\’t so full of fluid. His heart rate is lower, his heart is beating more strongly and easily, and when I listened with the stethoscope, the murmur is quieter! This is beyond remarkable, I have to tell you. I don\’t think I have ever heard a heart murmur improve with the regular veterinary medicines.
\”He\’s so much more settled and happier,\” His mum told me. \”You know – he\’s stopped being frightened by thunder, and he\’s so much more relaxed in himself since you\’ve been doing the acupressure. Another thing I\’ve noticed is that he has more stamina. He can stand up on the grooming table while I\’m clipping him for a lot longer. Thanks so much for helping him feel better.\”
Acupressure is a remarkable support for health and well being. I am amazed at how much more I can help patients with this powerful healing tool.