Veterinary clinic focuses on alternative treatments for pets

Razz accepted more than 25 acupuncture needles without complaint.

The pit bull-mastiff mix was a patient of Dr. Cheryl Becker at Mansfield Veterinary Wellness Clinic.

“It started with physical therapy,” Becker said of her idea for a wellness clinic. “I wanted to be able to do more than just prescribe medication.”

Becker started as a veterinarian in 2003.

“I love to get hands-on with my patients,” she said. “It started out as a house-call service.

“I got to know my patients and their families so well. It’s important to combine Western and alternative therapies.”

Clinic not in competition with general practitioners

Becker emphasized her business is not in competition with general practitioners and acts as a supplement to what they provide.

“We do alternative and integrative veterinary medicine,” she said. “We are happy to integrate with their regular veterinary care.”

Mansfield Veterinary Wellness Clinic offers acupuncture, physical therapy, herbal formulations, laser therapy and chiropractic services.

Becker, along with technicians Toni Ross and Bethany Riggins, provide pain control for such conditions as arthritis, acute injuries, post-surgical care and neurological damage.

Razz seems to have neurological damage. He was the star patient Tuesday afternoon. The 1-year-old was dropped off last week in the overnight kennels at the Richland County Dog Shelter without any explanation for his condition.

Razz could not walk, and no one knew why. He went to the new wellness clinic last Friday and was back for a follow-up appointment for a reassessment. As Riggins fed him dry Cheerios, the brown and white dog with light blue eyes lay on a mat for his treatment. In addition to acupuncture, he received physical therapy and laser therapy.

Razz briefly donned green glasses for the laser therapy.

He has made improvements in the last week. In fact, he took four steps on Tuesday to get a cheeseburger from Dog Warden Missy Houghton.

“I almost lost my hand, but it was for a good cause,” she said.

Later in his appointment, Razz stood on his own for some time. He also walked a bit at a special adoption event at the shelter in the evening.

Idea for wellness clinic started about a decade ago

Patients like Razz are why Becker wanted to open such a business. She had had the idea for about 10 years.

“I’ve been working on it for quite a few years,” Becker said. “It was just finally the right time. We have a perfect space for what we want to do.”

The wellness clinic at 371 Cline Ave. is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Becker does veterinary work in Fredericktown on Thursdays.

An open house will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 25. Donations for the dog shelter will be accepted

To make an appointment, call 567307-3565. Becker encourages people to leave a message because they do not interrupt appointments to answer the phone.

“I want people to know what we do is we take each individual animal, and we develop a therapy protocol that is tailormade for each pet,” she said. “It’s not one size fits all.”

Becker also handles relief work at other veterinary clinics. She describes the role as being like a substitute teacher. mcaudill@gannett.com 419-521-7219

Twitter: @Mnjcaudill