Change is taking place in the world of equine veterinary medicine as more and more horse owners and practitioners look to alternative or complementary forms of treatment or prevention for a wide variety of maladies. It wasn’t very long ago that these therapeutic options were looked upon by veterinarians as quackery. That has changed in the past several years, with more and more veterinarians becoming educated in acupuncture, chiropractic, herbology, homeopathy, massage, magnetic therapy, laser therapy, and therapeutic nutrition.

A term used to describe the use of therapeutic options is holistic medicine. As the term would imply, it means dealing with the whole animal rather than with specific symptoms. Or, as it has often been stated, holistic medicine involves treating the animal, not the disease.

Kim Henneman, DVM, an equine practitioner located in Salt Lake City, Utah, and one of the featured speakers at the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association Annual Conference held in September in Burlington, Vt