Dr. Karen Turner Knarr finishes attaching electrodes to acupuncture needles in the hind quarters of Sassy a six-year-old lab-boxer mix with arthritic hips and knees, during a session of electro-acupuncture at East Ridge Animal Hospital on Wednesday. Dr. Knarr applies the Chinese medicinal art of acupuncture to the treatment of animals a few days per week at East Ridge Animal Hospital. While she mostly works with smaller animals like dogs and cats, she also has used the techniques on horses. Acupuncture has been found to be effective in pain management and in treatment of arthritis and related injuries.Fact file
— Name: Dr. Karen Turner Knarr.–Age: 48.– Family: Husband Robert Knarr; children Kathryn, 19, and Jackson, 9.– Pets: 3 horses, 3 cats, 10 laying hens and a rabbit.– Hometown: Rainsville, Ala.– Education: 1989 graduate, Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine.–Favorite book: “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett.– Favorite movie: “Secretariat.”– Favorite singer: Jimmy Buffett.– What would people be surprised to learn about you? “I enjoy rug hooking.”
When local veterinarian Karen Turner Knarr realized firsthand the benefits of acupuncture, she thought the procedure would benefit animals as well.
“It’s another tool for helping with pain,” Knarr said. “I thought it would be particularly helpful to dogs with arthritis.”
The veterinarian soon learned there were several educational institutes in the United States that focused on acupuncture and alternative healing techniques for animals. She contacted the Chi Institute of Chinese Medicine in Reddick, Fla., and soon enrolled in a 160-hour, six-month course offered exclusively for licensed veterinarians.
According to Chi Institute’s website, tcvm.cm, its mission is to train licensed veterinarians to become “cutting-edge animal health-care providers, capable of practicing veterinary acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine and other traditional Chinese veterinary medicine skills.”