PEMF therapy is an increasingly well-recognized type of energy therapy.
With uses for pain, wounds, and even mental health, PEMF has proven its versatility in the health and wellness sphere.
Although many wellness tools are intended for use only by humans, PEMF therapy actually stands out among the rest, in that it can be used by humans and their beloved pets.
What Is PEMF Therapy?
PEMF therapy is a type of energetic therapy that uses electromagnetic pulses to interact with the natural frequencies and electromagnetic signatures found in the bodies of living things.
Although PEMF therapy has enjoyed a surge of research and support for use in human patients, it can also be a wonderful therapy for pets.
The basis of PEMF therapy actually extends back thousands of years.
Magnet therapy is the “prototype,” of sorts, for PEMF therapy.
Just as magnets were once used to draw and manipulate the electromagnetic energy in the body to support health, PEMF therapy interacts with natural electromagnetic pulses to improve health and support general wellness.
The name “Pulsed Electromagnetic Field” describes the way electromagnetic frequencies are delivered in PEMF therapy.
Through a series of pulses that are neither felt nor heard, PEMF machines deliver electromagnetic frequencies to the body of a person or animal for a period as short as 10-15 minutes or as long as a couple of hours.
These waves match the frequency of the earth’s natural electromagnetic frequency, and penetrate deep into cells to encourage the body to heal itself and bring its systems back into alignment.
PEMF and Pets: the History of PEMF Therapy
PEMF therapy was initially developed as a therapy modality for humans, but has been used as a healing therapy for animals far longer than it has enjoyed a presence in clinics designed for human treatment.
The most significant way that it was used in animal trials was its use in healing horses.
Because horses are often pushed to their limits in racing and even working on farms, their muscles are often fatigued, and can take a great deal of time to heal and “recharge,” so to speak.
PEMF therapy was found to speed muscle recovery in horses, leading to the development of further research into potential animal uses.
Once animals had been receiving and benefiting from PEMF therapy successfully for a long period of time, the therapy branched out once again into human studies and trials.
PEMF therapy has actually been a life-saving medical tool for animals.
PEMF therapy was first widely used on horses, in order to speed muscle recovery and aid in healing injuries brought on by racing.
Being able to make the process of healing from injuries and recover from muscle soreness quickly could easily make the difference between life and death for a horse.
Horses used in racing are seen as commodities, and if a commodity threatens to cost more than it can give back to its owner, it was often euthanized.
PEMF therapy made healing faster and easier on everyone, potentially saving horses that had gotten injured or had aged from being euthanized.
Although PEMF therapy in its current iteration was developed with animals in mind before making the leap to human therapy, it is still a common and extremely useful form of therapy for animals.
Indoor pets, farm animals, and show animals can all benefit from the many healing aspects of PEMF therapy, whether those animals are in need of therapy to heal a specific malady (an injury, for instance, or a wound) or just generally need support as they age.
PEMF therapy is a low-risk therapy, making it the ideal therapy intervention for the delicate internal systems of animals.
Veterinary offices frequently offer the therapy in the clinic or, in the case of larger animals, may offer house calls to administer PEMF.
How Does PEMF Therapy Work in Animals?
Animals’ bodies are driven by energy, the same way a human body is driven by energy.
It can be useful to think of food as fuel, and the animal’s body as an engine or a vehicle that consumes that fuel.
When food (or fuel) enters the body, it undergoes a process that creates energy molecules out of food, and those molecules are then used to trigger the body’s natural processes, such as movement and metabolism.
When this process is thrown off balance, food and subsequent energy stores may have difficulty providing adequate amounts of energy, leading to illness, fatigue, and depressed immunity.
PEMF therapy essentially replenishes the energy stores and improves communication between energy molecules and cells, allowing animals to enjoy greater endurance, better recovery times, and a more robust response to foreign invaders, inflammation, and stressors.
PEMF therapy for animals does not differ substantially from PEMF therapy designed for humans.
Both operate on the basic assumption that the body is filled with its own electromagnetic waves, and that those waves can be changed (for good or for bad) by external waves.
The goals of PEMF therapy in animals often mirror the goals for PEMF therapy in humans, and can be useful in alleviating symptoms of depressed mood, slow wound healing, and fatigued tissue repair.
PEMF therapy is unique in the way it treats animals, because of its effect on nitric oxide.
Nitric oxide is an important molecule in the body of animals.
When nitric oxide is abundant, cells are better able to communicate with one another, streamlining the function of most bodily systems and increasing healing times.
When nitric oxide is too abundant, however, it can become toxic and begin negatively affecting cellular function and communication.
PEMF therapy helps stabilize nitric oxide production in an animal’s body, keeping it well within healthy ranges.
Although PEMF therapy is a wonderful form of therapy for humans, it may be even more powerful for animals.
Because animals as a whole have much faster metabolic systems than humans, they are more susceptible to external forces—including PEMF machines.
Animals may be more quickly and effectively impacted by the healing properties of PEMF therapy, and can benefit tremendously from having a PEMF therapy in the home.
Finding a Practitioner
Although PEMF therapy can be delivered to pets by pet owners, it is also often delivered to pets in a veterinary clinic.
Because PEMF therapy was more widely used in animals prior to its consistent use in humans, many veterinary clinics offer different types of PEMF therapy to treat different maladies unique to pets.
To administer PEMF therapy to an animal, a practitioner or pet owner will take a series of electrodes or transmitters, and place those on the animal.
In some cases, these will be placed in a localized area, such as the joints, and in others, they may be placed all over the body, in order to create a systemic response.
Once the transmitters have been put in place, the PEMF machine is turned on, and silent waves are transmitted into the animal in question for the duration of the treatment session.
PEMF sessions can be as short as a few minutes or as long as an hour, depending on the amount of treatment needed to see results, and the willingness of the animal to remain still and calm throughout the session.
Some veterinarians might prefer to deliver PEMF therapy in the animal’s home environment to make sure they are as calm as possible.
If you are unable to find a vet who offers PEMF therapy, your pets do not have to go without.
PEMF machines are safe and easy to use.
Pet owners can deliver the healing energy of PEMF therapy themselves, from the comfort of their homes, with a PEMF machine designed for home use.
These can be found online, and typically come with detailed instructions for safe and effective use.
What Does PEMF Treat in Pets?
PEMF therapy for animals was initially used to heal tissue degradation and joint injuries, in order to speed healing and lessen the likelihood of an infection.
The ailments pets encounter that are effectively treated by PEMF include:
- Sore muscles. Sore muscles are the basis of PEMF use with pets, and PEMF continues to be regarded as a reliable and safe means of easing muscle soreness in animals large and small.
- Chronic pain. Chronic pain is one of the most well supported uses of PEMF therapy, and this support extends to animals.
- PEMF therapy can speed the healing of fractures in animals. Although fractures in humans do not present a lot of issues, fractures in animals can present a lot of issues, including lameness and infection. Speedy fracture recovery can mean the different between life and death in pets.
- Joint pain/inflammation. Many animals with prior injuries and of advanced age experience joint pain and inflammation of the joints. PEMF can help relieve both the pain and the inflammation itself.
- Mood issues. Animals can experienced depressed mood and increased anxiety, just as humans can. PEMF therapy can help soothe the symptoms of both depression and anxiety.
- Some pets are more predisposed to developing asthma, which can cause inflamed airways and increased risk for other health conditions to develop. PEMF can help soothe the inflammation associated with asthma.
- Wound healing has a lot of research support for PEMF. Because animals are not capable of the cognition necessary to stay still or follow treatment guidelines to heal wounds, speeding up wound healing in animals can be extremely important to make sure animals make a full recovery.
- Some PEMF therapy users have suggested that PEMF therapy can be useful in treating cancer. Because PEMF therapy comes with so few side effects, many pet owners turn to PEMF therapy for their pets’ treatment.
- Signs of aging. PEMF therapy is a unique therapy, in that it offers healing on a cellular level. Easing the signs of aging in animals is far less about smoothing wrinkles, as it might be in humans, and far more about easing the transition between youth and old age, and the pain and inflammation that often accompanies advanced age in animals.
- Animal allergies. Allergies are most often linked to a histamine response, which can be an extreme reaction to normal external stimuli. PEMF therapy can help calm the histamine response, soothing the symptoms of allergies in pets.
One of the best things about PEMF therapy is that it does not have to target a specific illness or ailment at all.
Instead, PEMF therapy can be used as a preventative tool to make sure animals have the best chance possible of remaining healthy in the face of exposure to pathogens, seasonal changes, and stressors that may arise.
If a PEMF machine is purchased for pets to help with a specific malady, pets will benefit and will not be at risk for harm if their owners continue to proactively use the therapy.
PEMF Therapy and Pets
PEMF therapy is being recognized for its promise in treating a wide range of conditions in humans, but it has been demonstrating its usefulness in animals for far longer, demonstrating just how powerful it can be, and how many different uses it can serve in supporting health and improving healing times.
Because animals of all shapes and sizes can have delicate bone structures, immune systems, and metabolic systems, finding safe and non-invasive therapies is often at the frontline of veterinary medicine, and PEMF therapy delivers on both of these in spades.
From a small house cat with respiratory issues to a horse with chronic muscle fatigue, PEMF therapy can provide restoration to an ailing body, and increase the speed and likelihood of healing after an injury.
Pets become family just as much as any other member of the family, and losing one to a preventable illness, or an injury that can be healed is devastating.
PEMF therapy can help beloved pets by increasing recovery times, supporting healthy aging processes, and reducing inflammation.
PEMF machines can be purchased to administer therapy consistently at home, or can be found in many veterinary offices around the country.