Maybe your pet is panting more than usual…or she doesn’t want to jump up on the cat tree…or he’s licking an area on his leg all the time. These symptoms are signs that your pet is in pain—and by the time you see those behaviors, there’s a good chance they’ve been uncomfortable for quite a while.
Pets often instinctively hide pain, and it’s important for pet parents to recognize the signs of pain in their animal companions and learn about therapies available to help them. While acute or urgent pain is obvious, chronic discomfort can be subtle and pet owners may see it as simply “getting old” or “slowing down”.
At Bell Veterinary Hospital, we take treating pain very seriously and in addition to medication have several drug-free options for restoring your pet’s quality of life.
Once the area of focus is identified, we highly recommend and offer laser therapy, which uses a beam of laser light to reduce pain, inflammation, and speed healing. This treatment is effective for a long list of conditions, including arthritis, joint disease, infections, sprains and strains, lick granulomas, skin allergies and more.
Many patients have also found relief with acupuncture, which is often used in conjunction with laser therapy and other pain management treatments. This virtually painless process is one of the safest veterinary treatments available, has no side effects and is especially wonderful for senior pets or those who cannot tolerate medication. If your pet is showing symptoms of pain, or if you want to find out if laser therapy or acupuncture might help your animal friend, call us at 205-486-4500.