Four Paws, Five Directions: A Guide to Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs

Wonderful book to have on hand. It lists symptoms and treatments for cats and dogs health problems. It contains advice on an animals diet as well as acupressure points to help balance our animals that are having health issues.

This book is fantastic! I learned massage techniques and acupressure points to relieve my dogs' pain. My black lab has a lower lumbar and neck injury. Typical black lab was chasing a bunny and not watching where she was running, slammed head-first into a chain link fence. Drawings of internal organ placement show how and why the acupressure works for any particular ailment or pain. And who doesn't love a massage. The book also describes how and where to massage for best effect. This book covers info about herbs altho my vet supplies me with our herbs. All these things have helped dramatically with her pain. I will never put my dogs on NSAIDS again. The herbs are not harmful and my dogs tolerate them so much easier. I also have a German shepard that has licked all the hair off of an area in front of her hind leg on her lower abdomen. I read here that a dog will try to compensate for pain in one area by licking herself in another. I don't know exactly where she hurts, but by carefully trying the acupressure and massage techniques she has stopped licking that spot. Her hair should grow back soon. Like my veterinarian, I don't recommend the diet. There is a lot of info on the internet about "species appropriate" nutrition for dogs/carnivores, which of course includes wolves. Dogs teeth are for tearing raw meat, but for crunching on smaller bones than wolves can manage with their large canine teeth. Raw meaty bones (RMBs) are my dogs' mainstay. Rawfed.com dispells the myths of raw feeding. I recommend this book for anyone who wants to help relieve their dog of pain or other health problem. My lab is doing so much better with natural remedies than with the steroids, NSAIDS, and lipioids which the other specialty vets had her popping all day long. She couldn't even stand. Now it's hard to keep her calm. teeth are for tearing raw meat

Four Paws and Five Directions is written by Cheryl Schwartz, a veterinarian. It is a very informative book and it can help you understand what your vet is trying to accomplish. The book is well illustrated and shows you the points for acupuncture. Chinese medicine is based on the natural elements. The Chinese saw similarities between natural elements and the body. The body is divided into Meridians . One of the meridians is called the Triple Heater. It describes temperature regulation in the body. Each meridian has a time that is performs at its best Along with the Five Elements and Meridians, there is a system of Ying and Yang and the rest of the eight principles. The eight principles are based upon qualitity,quantity, and location of a problem. In addition the external environment is taken into account. The book talks about Jing Essence, which is similar to DNA in western medicine The spirit is part of the healing process. There is a chapter on herbs . Chinese medicine is known as TCM. It can sometimes denote a pattern of imbalance that would not show up in a Western type health clinic TCM restores balance to the body. It does not suppress or kill parts of the body. It is a gentle healing process and the Whole is taken into account. Another chapter discusses food and how the food can aid in healing. Temperature, flavors,ying and yang, and methods of mixing all have a part in the healing process Foods mimic the Season. Summer are hot foods(peppers)Fall the foods are sweet and sour(barley, sweet potato, duck,and string beans)are examples . The book is full of colorful information, and I recommend it to anyone wanting to know more about Chinese Medicine.It is a very interesting read!

While I am grateful for the description of the points and what each one does; when you are trying to treat your pup quickly there is much to be desired in finding the points quickly. The Triple Heater (TH5) was impossible to find in the book and I had to refer to another book to find it. Also needing to skip around in the book for other points on different pages is awkward and frustrating keeping the book open to so many different pages. Needs to be reworked in a new edition.

MY PANDA IS A CAT. I NEEDED THIS ITEM IN A TIMELY MANNER. MY PET MAY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO FIGHT OFF BETTER WHAT IS HURTING HIM IF THIS REFERENCE BOOK WOULD HAVE ARRIVED AT MY HOME IN TIME. IT IS AN ACUPUNCTURE CHART, FOR BOTH CATS AND DOGS. IT INCLUDES HERBS AND FOOD THAT THE ANIMALS CAN BE GIVEN TOO, EITHER CATS OR DOGS. HOW TO DO QI GONG, HOW TO DO MASSAGING OF THE MERIDIANS. IT IS A TOOL THAT OWNERS CAN APPLY AND KNOW THAT THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING TO THE HEALTH AND WELLBEING OF THEIR PETS. I FAULT THE THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SENDING THIS BOOK FOR NOT GETTING THIS BOOK TO ME WITHIN A BETTER TIME FRAME. I PROBABLY WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER BOOK THROUGH AMAZON.COM AGAIN. I REALIZE THE MARCH 7 IS THE LAST DAY GIVEN TO RECEIVE THIS PRODUCT. HOWEVER, IT IS BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE TO MAKE SURE WE GET ITEMS WE PURCHASE SOONER THAN THE LAST DELIVER DATE. I THOUGHT IT WOULD TAKE LESS TIME TO BE DELIVERED SO I DID NOT PAY THE EXTRA MONEY I DO NOT HAVE SO I COULD APPLY THE MONEY TO THE DOCTORS. I RECEIVED MY DVDS WITHIN THREE BUSINESS DAYS. THE PRODUCT IS EXCELLENT THE TIME DELIVERED TO ME IS TERRIBLE ...I AM STILL WAITING FOR A VERY IMPORTANT REFERENCE BOOK THAT WOULD HAVE GIVEN MY PET A BETTER FIGHTING HANCE AT LIFE. THE NEED, IN THE TIME WAITING FOR THIS BOOK, HAS BECOME, MAY HAVE BECOME, A HOSPICE MATTER FOR MY PET, PANDA.

I truly love this book. The beginning gives one of the best explanations of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) I have ever read. It is basic, clear and understandable. If you don't know, TCM is extremely complex and to write such an intelligent, straight forward guide to understanding it is quite an accomplishment. The middle part of the book goes into how diagnosis are made in TCM and the last part is about how to treat various body system disorders. If you are looking for treatment for a specific disorder, it may or may not be specifically listed, but you could figure out an appropriate treatment easily from the systems information that is given. I am happy to now have a usable reference for working acupressure with my dog and cats. The diagrams of the meridians and points are very good and the charts very helpful. This book has been very well done.

I bought this book on the advice of a Davis Veterinary professor who performed acupuncture on my dog. Since then I've bought it several times for pet-loving friends. The massage techniques are particularly useful on July 4th, January 1, and the like.

I wish more vets would be more open to holistic healing for dogs and cats but sadly thats not where the big money is at. This book is Fascinating and very useful. After the negligent death of my beloved cat from a pain medication called "Metacam". I'm looking to learn everything I can to empower myself in all forms of natural medicine for my cats and dogs. This book is simply written for anyone to learn the basics of Chinese Medicine for dogs and cats even if your just a novice like me. The information on diets, herbs and homeapathy, etc.. is priceless. I read only a few chapters and had no problem finding the pressure points from the info and charts shown in the book. I only wish I would have had the book sooner, maybe my cat would still be here. I'm sure it will come in handy for all my animals. I wish Cheryl Schwartz practiced in my area, her love and knowledge for dogs and cats really shows in this book. Whole Health for Happy Cats: A Guide to Keeping Your Cat Naturally Healthy, Happy, and Well-Fed (Quarry Book) Tatianna: Tales and Teachings of My Feline Friend