Our Approach
We want your pet to have the best quality of life and to live for as long as possible.
Achieving this requires a level of commitment on your part and ours. Our ideal is to identify issues early and take proactive steps with the intent of delaying, preventing, or even reversing a disease process.
First, we should talk about Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM). Chinese medicine equates health with being “in balance” and it follows that being unhealthy or in a diseased state, is due to being imbalanced. This gets even more intricate as individuals with the same Western diagnosis can have different TCVM imbalances which means treatment plans must be individualized. Think of this as two unstable buildings, one which has a sinking foundation and the other has a solid foundation but cracked beams. Returning them to stability and preventing recurrence requires two different plans.
Our intake process is very detailed and comprehensive. You will find no other practitioner who studies every available detail of your pet’s medical history in advance of your initial consultation. This is extremely valuable because the power of TCVM is in understanding and identifying patterns of disease. Chinese medicine has been practiced for over 2000 years and is largely built upon observation, since modern diagnostics did not exist. She looks at everything, not just your pet’s primary issue, as it is all part of the same whole that needs to be in balance.
What if your pet is young or you have no medical history available? Dr. Yamate can still diagnose and treat based on a Chinese medicine exam.
In general, Western medications palliate symptoms but do not necessarily address the root cause. Recall that we are addressing imbalances and when balance is restored, and maintained, the building won’t topple over!
So how do we address imbalances? While the concept comes from Chinese medicine, Dr. Yamate has experience with variety of alternative treatments and will provide a recommendation. Bear in mind that while alternative treatments tend to have fewer risks and side effects, they are also subtle and can be slower to take effect when compared to the “hammer” of a Western medication.
Our goal is for your pet to receive individualized,
thorough care and for you to feel supported.
To set your expectations, here are a few cases and their treatment plans which are ongoing. Imbalances and deficiencies in younger pets may be able to be addressed with a short term treatment plan. Like people, older pets don’t bounce back the way they did in their youth and need on going treatment.
Generally healthy dog that started with us as a puppy: quarterly exams, 3 supplements for joint, ligament, teeth, annual labwork starting at 5 years old.
6 year old agility dog: Initially chiropractic monthly, acupuncture monthly, labwork yearly. After 2 months, acupuncture extended out to every 6 weeks. Kidney parameters show declining function at 8 yrs old – added 1 supplement, 1 Chinese herb, changed diet, shortened acupuncture and chiropractic to monthly.
12 year old dog with hind end weakness, kidney disease and cognitive dysfunction: every two weeks alternating acupuncture and chiropractic+laser therapy, 4 supplements, 2 Chinese herbs, labwork every 6 mos, vaccine titers yearly.
11 year old dog with cancer (not treated with surgery, radiation or chemotherapy): Initially – acupuncture every 2 weeks, 3 herbal formulas, 4 supplements, diet change. After 2 months, acupuncture extended to every 3-4 weeks, continue with herbs/supplements. On going adjustments to plan based on how patient is doing.
Veterinarians bring their own pets to see Dr. Yamate
Western medications are invaluable for managing specific diseases and may be necessary to address acute conditions. As an example, seizures may be initially controlled with Western drugs and, with the careful introduction of Chinese herbs, it may be possible to reduce the dose of the Western drug or eliminate it entirely. With cancer, if interventions such as surgery, chemotherapy or radiation are pursued, Dr. Yamate will adjust the treatment plan before, during & after to direct the treatment to be supportive of the body and later to prevent spread or recurrence.
A CONTINUUM OF CARE - probably deleting from here down
Relatively Healthy
Reva comes to us after having surgery for elbow dysplasia. She is also prone to diarrhea.
New age related issue
Reva has been getting labwork every 6 months after turning 8 years old. We notice her kidney parameters are declining but the changes would not be considered kidney "failure"
This is the heading
A lump is noticed on the back of Reva's leg. She is diagnosed with lymphoma.