WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — When a dog has arthritis or a torn ligament, getting your furry friend back to health can be a rigorous journey. A local veterinarian, however, offers a natural and minimally invasive treatment as a solution.

Dr. Bryan Wade of A Caring Heart Veterinary Hospital is constantly looking for ways to save clients money and use more natural treatments. One of the treatments offered is for joint injuries.

“I got interested in integrative medicine like eight or 10 years ago when I started doing acupuncture, Chinese acupuncture, and herbal medicine,” Wade said. “When this new treatment came along it [was] actually using the dog’s own blood cells to help regenerate tissues in the body and help treat joint problems and stuff.”

The treatment itself is called platelet-rich plasma injections, and these injections remodel the injuries.

“They actually help the body heal itself,” he said. “And really, our bodies are capable of healing without medications. It’s just a matter of, you know, getting everything in alignment for the body to heal and utilize the cells that it already has. So I feel like it’s complementary to the previous treatments and stuff that were available and I don’t think so”

Wade has found success with this treatment as he said, on average, the dogs are back running around in two days.

“I had a case of a two-year-old dog that had bad hip dysplasia and couldn’t even jump off the couch,” the vet said. “After doing the treatment, within two days he was jumping on the couch and not on any pain meds or anything like that anymore. It’s really rewarding to see.”

Wade said he wants to use as much natural healing as possible for lasting results.

“The main goal is to reduce medication so we don’t get the side effects on the liver and the kidneys and [to] try to help eliminate the expensive medications and all of the side effects,” he said.

According to Wade, because the treatment isn’t surgical, there are no pain medications. The healing time is faster, and dogs tend to live healthier and longer lives afterward, he said.

For more information on this holistic process and A Caring Heart Veterinary Clinic’s other services, visit their website.