New age approach

Just like us paw-rents, our furry companions make use of more than just conventional veterinary medicine to get better. Our resident pooches, Bobby, Bella and Piper, put five alternative therapies to the test.
Gillian Lim 11 January 2018

Alternative or New Age therapies may lack scientific backing, but a rise in popularity of such treatments has given paw-rents more options when it comes to soothing
their furkid’s ailments or gaining a better understanding of their pets. Commonly known as natural remedies, holistic healing or complementary care, these treatments don’t claim to replace traditional veterinary care but instead, are used alongside modern medicine to aid your pooch’s recovery and boost their well-being. The pets team and our resident pooches, Bobby, Bella and Piper, try out a handful.

Bioresonance test

What is it: A non-invasive allergy test, done at a clinic, which works with electromagnetic frequency (EMF) to figure out the substances your pet is tolerant, intolerant or neutral towards.

How it’s done: Prior to the test, paw-rents need to prepare up to 20 samples, such as kibble, treats, shampoo, floor cleaner, etc. These will be tested on top of a standard test panel, which covers meat, fish, grains and environmental substances.

These samples (which emit a unique frequency of their own) are placed in beakers and hooked up to the bioresonance machine and a copper plate. “The plate emits the frequency of the substance in the beaker, and since the pet also has a unique frequency, there will be a reaction in the space between the pet and the plate,” explains Lucia Meijer, a holistic practitioner with Animal Recovery and Veterinary Referral Centre.

Verdict: The results were immediate and painless—we discover that Bobby the Pug can’t consume lamb, beef, wheat and carrots. On the bright side, he’s tolerant towards duck, turkey, most fish and bananas.

While this test is only about 75 percent accurate and is merely a diagnostic tool to find out what your pooch may or may not be allergic to, such information can be useful in determining whether any part of your furkid’s life should be adjusted. “Allergies or intolerances can show up in many different ways,” says Lucia. “For example, skin issues, digestive issues and even ear or eye problems can be related to allergies. I’ve tested thousands of dogs over the past six years, and they’ve improved a lot after their diet or environmental substances were changed on the basis of the results of this test.”

Price: $300 per test, inclusive of the 20 items that the paw-rent can bring from home.

Animal Recovery and Veterinary Referral Centre
466 Serangoon Road, Singapore 218225
Tel: 6252 2623

Animal communication

What it is: Also known as pet psychics, these individuals connect with your pet via telepathy and act as your furkid’s translator and voice.

How it’s done: Often done over WhatsApp, paw-rents prepare a list of questions and photos, and the communicator uses telepathy to talk to your pet. “The pet shares information through images, words, sounds, feelings and smells,” says 36-year-old Natalie Chan, an animal communicator with five years of experience.

So how does an animal communicator use telepathy to connect with one’s furkid? “It’s like a Skype session,” says Natalie. “I start off each session with meditation to centre myself, and then I connect with the animal telepathically with the basis of love. The procedure is the same whether it’s via texting or face-to-face. Once a connection is made, the conversation starts.” The same applies for Ezekiel Ong, a 29-year-old animal communicator with four years of experience who adds that animals communicate regularly with telepathy. “It’s an ability we’re all born with, but as humans, we learn to rely on verbal communication and our telepathic skills become rusty,” he says.

Verdict: While there were some varying inaccuracies, the information that we received about Bobby, Bella and Piper were about 85 percent accurate.
Natalie hit the nail on the head that Bella will rush for food and can be quite pushy. Piper (who, unbeknown to Natalie, has poor dental health) also told Natalie: “Must check teeth ah?” Amy conducted a face-to-face session with Bobby and got it right that he often gets upset when his paw-rents leave for work. The
last session was facilitated over WhatsApp by Ezekiel, who likened Bobby to an insecure boyfriend that believes the luxurious life he’s living now is shortlived—which is accurate, as it’s only been four months since he was adopted from a breeding farm.

Price: Ranges from $38 to $200.

Amy Lim, Tel: 9001 3828
Ezekiel Ong, facebook.com/ACSingapore
Natalie Chan, Tel: 9688 0412

For more alternative therapy reviews, flip to Body and Soul (pg 56) of our Dec 2017/Jan 2018 issue!