What we all want for our pets:
A long, happy life

Dr. Rachel's childhood dog, Roscoe, suffered from a degenerative spinal cord condition in his last years of life known as degenerative myelopathy (DM). This disease is characterized by spontaneous, progressive degeneration of the spinal cord, which starts at the tail and progresses toward the head over a matter of weeks, months, or years. Early symptoms include rear leg weakness and possible loss of tail tone. Later symptoms include fecal/urinary incontinence and complete rear leg paralysis. Degenerative myelopathy is a difficult disease for owners and veterinarians alike to manage, and it is heart wrenching to watch. Roscoe first experienced symptoms of DM at age 12, and he was humanely euthanized at the age of 14. It wasn't until several years after Roscoe's passing that Dr. Rachel learned that acupuncture is the single most beneficial therapy for this condition, which has been shown to slow the progression of disease, sometimes sparing the patient from experiencing rapid loss of function, and ultimately buying back precious time. While conventional Western medicine lacks appropriate therapies to treat this disease and others, Dr. Rachel is inspired by the hope that acupuncture and other alternative therapies can offer to pets and their owners.