CRAH New Vet Enhances Quality of Life Through Integrative Methods

  • By: Karen Skubik
  • February 23, 2014
  • 401
                        
Seven years ago Tigger should have died. One cold winter day a small tabby cat went to sleep in a garbage dumpster in an attempt to stay warm. After the dumpster’s contents were brought to the recycling center and passed through a shredder to separate the contents, an almost motionless form was spotted on the conveyor belt. With frostbitten ears and unknown other problems “Shredder”, as the survivor was temporarily named, was treated at the nearby Seville Animal Hospital. Dr. Cheryl Becker, a graduate of The College of Wooster and The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, treated Shredder and speculated that he was having difficulty breathing due to a frostbite damaged respiratory tract. Donna Ryan, a second grade teacher at the time, caught wind of the story and shared it with her class. Ryan regularly assigned human-interest writing assignments to her class. So, her students wrote to the animal hospital thanking those who saved the young feline’s life. According to Ryan, “Dr. Cheryl then offered to bring him to their class and she brought a wallet-sized photo for every student.” Ryan just fell in love with Shredder, but it wasn’t a good time for her to adopt a homeless cat. She shared, “I was caring for my mother who had Alzheimers and she wasn’t a cat person.” But after telling her mother the amazing survival story, Ryan’s mother said “we need to take him home”. So on 4/27/2007 Shredder was renamed Tigger and not only became a member of Ryan’s household, he was truly a welcome diversion as “he made my mom so happy in the remaining months of her life”. Just as Tigger enhanced Ryan’s mother’s quality of life, Dr. Becker still wanted to help Tigger and address his chronic snuffling, probably a result of physical damage from his earlier life where he was exposed to bitter cold temperatures. When standard treatments did not improve Tigger’s labored breathing, Becker investigated alternative options. Her exploration led to additional certification through training programs in both Florida and Tennessee. Becker is a now a certified veterinary acupuncturist and a certified canine rehabilitation practitioner and works at The Cleveland Road Animal Hospital (CRAH) in Wooster. Although Ryan and Tigger live in Wadsworth, they travel once a month to Wooster so Tigger can receive acupuncture treatments to supplement his use of Chinese herbs – all working to improve his breathing. Ryan shared, “I will follow (Cheryl) wherever she is. She saved Tigger’s life. There’s a special bond between the 3 of us that no one can break.” Dr. Chad Bailey, co-owner of Cleveland Road Animal Hospital along with his wife Stephanie, stated, "You know, I grew up as a typical Ohio farm kid, so I am not someone who would just jump on alternative medicine without being skeptical at first. However, in all my years of veterinary training, all across the country, I have seen canine rehabilitation, acupuncture, and alternative Chinese medicine work very well in numerous patients.” The Baileys are excited to have Becker join their staff and noted, “Until now, these services simply were not available in our area, and our clients would have to travel long distances to find them. Sure, Dr Cheryl is a great veterinarian, but her additional expertise in these fields are a great addition to our team here at Cleveland Road Animal Hospital." Another local survivor is Charlie, a 13 year-old black and white friendly dog who belongs to Greg and Kathy Long. Long commented, “Modern medicine is an amazing thing. 20 years ago he would have been put down 4 or 5 different times, but now, he is like the energizer bunny. He keeps walking.” Charlie visits Becker at the CRAH once a week for physical rehabilitation to stabilize his core muscles. “The stronger we can keep him, the more aligned he will be”, noted Becker. Greg Long shared, “The PT has really helped Charlie regain his mobility. He can now stand up without us helping him, he climbs stairs ……… his progress has been amazing.” Becker’s integrative techniques can be used to compliment common Western veterinary medicine practices by unleashing the healing properties of the patient. Acupuncture, Chinese herbs, and physical rehabilitation can be used to treat painful conditions noted Becker like arthritis, disc disease, and cancer in addition to neurologic and metabolic diseases. Rehabilitation can decrease time to return to normal function after surgery or injury, help with conditioning and weight loss.


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