Many of us are familiar with the physical toll that anxiety takes on our bodies, especially in light of the current pandemic. Dogs and cats can also suffer from a wide range of anxiety disorders, stemming from fear (especially in dogs) or territoriality (especially in cats), separation anxiety, and anxiety associated with aging and cognitive decline. 

Chloe suffers from fear-based anxiety, and despite her impressive size (she's almost 80 pounds!), she's always fearful of the new, the loud, the erratic/unpredictable, and really anything that moves. Behavior disorders, including anxiety, are frustrating for owners and veterinarians alike. It's not an "easy" fix, and treatment relies heavily on the owner's consistency with behavior modification techniques, with lots of guidance from trained professionals (your vet, a good animal trainer who utilizes positive reinforcement training techniques, sometimes a veterinarian who specializes in Animal Behavior, and I would argue, a good acupuncturist!). 

Acupuncture and behavior modification techniques alone can effectively treat mild anxiety cases where medications are not indicated. Acupuncture and behavior modification techniques can also reduce the amount of medications needed to control anxiety in more severe cases, and acupuncture can provide that extra little bit of help in controlling really severe anxiety cases where drugs and behavior modification aren't enough. Chloe originally started treatment with acupuncture to help with her allergies, but improvements in her social anxiety have made me a firm believer in acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy for anxiety disorders!