A veterinary nurse’s quest to help ease the pain of her pet Labrador’s arthritis has led to a new business venture.
Emily Towler, from Ovington, as a qualified veterinary nurse is passionate about the welfare of pets and since qualifying seven years ago, has been particularly interested in pain management. This month, after years of research, she launched her own business, Healix, offering a drug free, non-invasive treatment for pets to be pain free.
The 28-year-old said: “Laser therapy has been around for longer than people think, but it is just now being used in frontline practices, although it has been used for some time in referral practices.”
The red-light laser therapy, known as photo biomodulation, is a non-invasive treatment using red or near infra-red light to promote healing and reduce pain and inflammation by energising cell repair and growth.
She added: “Maple our 12-year-old Labrador has osteo-arthritis. I was looking at other ways to manage her pain and slow down the progression of the osteoarthritis which is quite pronounced on Maple’s joints. With being a veterinary nurse, I was keen to follow a medical model approach, and I looked into laser therapy.”
The laser targets cells in the body and uses specific wavelengths to stimulate cellular activity and can be used to treat more than 80 different conditions, such as arthritis, promote wound healing, reduces inflammation and ear problems.
The laser is directed on the affected area and stimulates cells to repair themselves, but also increases blood flow, reduces inflammation and pain and can be used on cats, dogs as well as horses.
After seeing the difference in Maple, Emily decided to set up her own business, Healix, to offer laser therapy for pets.
She said: “Maple is never going to be cured but it has helped her mobility, and she is able to move around more freely without pain.
“It is my mission to help as many pets as possible. I am mobile so I can go to pets in the comfort of their own homes if a trip in the car is too stressful or if there are pets that find it difficult getting into the car.”
Emily added: “I have just moved to a new veterinary practice at Appleby and the plan is once I have got settled, to run laser clinics, but I do have a plan to set up premises in Teesdale to run additional clinics.”
Laser sessions last three to seven minutes. For details, call 074600 27083 or email [email protected].
