IVAS-Certified Veterinary Acupuncture for Animals
At Shalako K | Veterinary Medicine, veterinary acupuncture is an important part of our integrative approach to patient care. Dr. Kaci Merk is certified through the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society (IVAS), allowing her to combine the principles of Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine with evidence-based Western veterinary medicine to create personalized treatment plans for a wide variety of conditions.
Whether your animal is experiencing chronic pain, recovering from an injury, managing a neurologic condition, or simply needing additional support for mobility and overall wellness, veterinary acupuncture can help stimulate the body’s natural healing processes while improving comfort and function.
What Is Veterinary Acupuncture?
Veterinary acupuncture involves the precise placement of sterile, single-use needles into specific points on the body to stimulate the nervous system, improve circulation, reduce inflammation, and encourage the body’s natural healing response.
By integrating Eastern and Western veterinary medicine, acupuncture can be used alongside chiropractic care, rehabilitation, laser therapy, and conventional medical treatments to provide a comprehensive, individualized approach to patient care.
Conditions That May Benefit from Veterinary Acupuncture
Veterinary acupuncture may be recommended for a wide range of conditions, including:
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Arthritis and joint pain
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Back and neck discomfort
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Muscle injuries and soft tissue conditions
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Neurologic disorders
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Mobility challenges
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Recovery after injury or surgery
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Performance support
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Chronic pain management
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General wellness and quality of life
Every patient is carefully evaluated to determine whether acupuncture is an appropriate part of their personalized treatment plan.
Laser Therapy as a Needle-Free Alternative
Not every patient is comfortable with acupuncture needles. For animals that are sensitive, anxious, very young, or simply better suited to another approach, therapeutic laser therapy can often be used to stimulate many of the same acupuncture points without needles.
Laser therapy helps reduce inflammation, relieve discomfort, improve circulation, and support the body’s natural healing process. Depending on your animal’s condition, Dr. Kaci may recommend laser therapy on its own or alongside acupuncture and chiropractic care as part of an integrative treatment plan.
Why Choose IVAS-Certified Veterinary Acupuncture?
IVAS is one of the world’s most respected organizations for veterinary acupuncture education. Dr. Kaci’s advanced training through the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society provides her with specialized knowledge in both Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine and modern veterinary medicine, allowing her to develop treatment plans that address the whole patient rather than focusing on symptoms alone.
Her goal is to combine the best of Eastern and Western medicine to improve comfort, mobility, healing, and long-term wellness for every patient she treats.
Why does veterinary acupuncture require a veterinarian?
Veterinary acupuncture should always be performed by a licensed veterinarian or, where permitted by law, under appropriate veterinary supervision. Before treatment begins, Dr. Kaci performs a comprehensive examination, establishes a valid veterinarian-client-patient relationship (VCPR), and determines whether acupuncture is appropriate for your animal’s condition.
This ensures every treatment is safe, medically appropriate, and integrated into your animal’s overall healthcare plan.
Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners Rule §573.16 – Alternate Therapies: Acupuncture
(a) Definition. For the purpose of this rule, acupuncture is:
(1) the insertion of an acupuncture needle and the application of moxibustion to specific areas of a non-human animal’s body to relieve the discomfort associated with painful disorders, to induce surgical anesthesia, and for therapeutic purposes; and
(2) the administration of thermal or electrical treatments or the recommendation of dietary guidelines, energy flow exercise, or dietary or herbal supplements in conjunction with the treatment described by paragraph (1) of this subsection. Acupuncture in non-human animals is considered to be an alternate therapy in the practice of veterinary medicine.
(b) Use of Acupuncture in the treatment of animals. Only licensed veterinarians may use acupuncture in the care and medical treatment of animals. No veterinarian may allow a non-veterinarian employee or other agent to perform acupuncture in the treatment of an animal patient.
(c) Client Consent Required. Before acupuncture may be used in the treatment of an animal, the veterinarian must obtain a signed statement from the animal’s owner or caretaker acknowledging that acupuncture is an alternate therapy in veterinary medicine and approving its use in the treatment of the animal. Before signing the statement, the veterinarian shall inform the client of the conventional treatments available and their probable ability to cure the problem. The statement shall become a permanent part of the patient’s record.
(d) Standard Used in Determining Appropriate Use of Acupuncture. If the Board receives a complaint against a licensee about treatment involving the use of acupuncture, investigation of the complaint may include opinions from other licensees who use acupuncture in their treatment of animals. However, veterinarians who practice acupuncture shall exercise the same degree of humane care, skill, and diligence in treating patients as are ordinarily used in the same or similar circumstances by average members of the veterinary medical profession in good standing in the locality or community, or in similar locations or communities, in which they practice.
(e) Other Board Rules Not Preempted. Nothing in this rule shall remove or limit in any way the applicability of other rules of the Board as they apply to the practice of veterinary medicine.
