A new veterinary practice in Trefeglwys offering a holistic approach to pet care.

Dr med vet Julia Ledger-Muennich from Germany has set up Chirovet Wales offering a range of holistic approaches to animal treatment and welfare including acupuncture, chiropractic treatments and herbal medicines.

She said: “The holistic approach means we are looking at everything, we aren’t excluding conventional medicine, we’re adding more tools to our toolbox. Sometimes conventional medicine and conventional practices are the best treatment, for example sometimes surgery needs to happen, and sometimes painkillers may be needed alongside acupuncture.

“My practice doesn’t have the same feeling as a conventional vet’s treatment room. It’s got more of a homely feel to it.

"You can see the difference when the animals come in, and a lot of people come to me saying ‘my animal is petrified of the vet’, I do think the homely feeling does help with that, but I do think it has a lot to do with my approach.

"I’m not tied to quick ten minute windows where we’d rush them in and rush them out. It’s a process of taking my time, talking to the owner and taking my time with the animal, they have a treat, they can sniff me or have a cuddle if they want, or if they need time to adjust I can leave them alone.

“I’m from Germany and in Germany and other countries, it’s a much more integrated treatment, most practices in Germany would have someone doing acupuncture. People here are definitely asking for it too, there are more things that can be done outside of conventional medicine.

“It treats the cause rather than the symptom. For example if you imagine you have a headache, you would think to take an aspirin or a painkiller. Whereas I would ask why you have a headache; are you drinking enough, or did you have an injury like twisting your ankle a few months ago? And from that your body had to compensate and that’s straining the nerves and causing the headache.”