Customer Reviews

Consumer's Guide to Alternative Therapies in the Horse

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

Having familiarized myself thoroughly with the "alternative" veterinary medical literature, I can assure Amazon.com clients that Dr. Ramey's book, "A Consumer's Guide to Alternative Therapies in the Horse," is the first well-researched, scientifically literate and accurate book ever published on the subject. Unfortunately, all the veterinary texts and most of the articles published to date on the subject - even those intended for veterinarians themselves -- are rife with errors, misleading statements and sloppy scholarship. Rather than providing accurate information, they offer mostly "promotional misinformation." Dr. Ramey doesn't give us "just the good news," he gives us "all the news" - both pro and con. His book is all the more remarkable in that it is primarily designed not for veterinarians or scientists, but for a lay audience. He and his various contributing authors deal beautifully with tough scientific issues in a manner that will be easily accessible to the average horse owner. (As a veterinarian, I'm quite certain many of my colleagues would learn much from this unique work.)

When dealing with the subject of "energy medicine," rather than relying on the metaphysical musings of some New Age guru, Dr. Ramey relies on the expertise of the University of Hawaii's Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Victor J. Stenger. Other editors of veterinary texts have called on self-proclaimed "veterinary chiropractors" (an officially "non-accredited" profession /specialty) to write chapters on chiropractic. Dr. Ramey, on the other hand, has called on Professor Joseph Keating. Dr. Keating teaches "The History of Chiropractic" at the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and is co-founder of the National Institute of Chiropractic Research. Rather than addressing the many serious shortcomings of "alternative" medical research, previous "alt vet med" authors and editors have generally preferred to simply ignore the problem and, instead, discuss at length the real and imaginary shortcomings of science-based medicine. Dr. Ramey has dealt with the issue by enlisting Dr. Edzard Ernst, Chairman of the University of Exeter's Department of Alternative and Complementary Medicine to write a chapter discussing "Common Misconceptions about Alternative Medicine." And so on...

If you're convinced you're going to cure your horse's terminal cancer with shark cartilage, or if you're determined to make a fortune by multi-level marketing "equine homeopathic remedies" over the Internet, this book is not for you. (Dr. Ramey and his contributing authors are rather unique in the field of "alternative medicine" in that they're not trying to sell anybody anything. On the other hand, the are willing to give the reader a dose or two of common sense at no charge -- beyond the very modest cover price of their book.) If you're interested in getting the "straight dope" on alleged "alternative" therapies for your horse, or even for yourself, this book is a "must have."

Robert Imrie, DVM

Dr. Ramey and colleagues have written an incredible book on much much more than alternative remedies for horses. In chapter after chapter, this book shows the lay reader how scientists approach questions. Without jargon, the book explains in detail what medical researchers mean when they ask for evidence of a remedy's effectiveness. The book then asks these questions of many currently popular 'alternative' medical techniques with a clear, scholarly, and accessible approach.

This book is a SERIOUS MUST READ for anyone who wants to understand the stance taken towards alternative medicine by modern scientists and physicians.

Considering all the treatments and misinformation that animal owners are having to contend with, this book is really needed. Dr. Ramey shows you how to combat the misleading and confusing claims by explaining how to evaluate the evidence with science and he also provides the facts on many alternative therapies. Although it's aimed at horse owners the information will be very helpful to pet owners, veterinarians, or anyone who's trying to sort through what works and what doesn't. The chapter on ethics promotes understanding by presenting both the client's and veterinarian's perspective. An excellent guide for those looking for the straight scoop.

This book should have been titled "People with impeccable credentials endlessly criticize 8 alternative modalities" and subtitled "in brief, we need more studies." I read every word and came away wondering how indeed we ever quit with leeches, bleeding and knocked-unconscious childbirth if it takes the evidence these folks require before making any decisions. There are some good points made and I did learn some interesting things, but using the words the authors so repeatedly use, at the least I was left with a hopeless and constricted view of alternative modalities, at the worst I may delay treatment because I didn't see anything that appeared to clearly be a good idea! (Strange they completely missed prayer for healing, which has had 6 randomized, prospective double-blind studies done showing a satistically significant improvement in rates of healing and lowered pain in human subjects--with no side effects! Reference: Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom by Christianne Northrup, M.D.; I have 2 of the studies.) Look elsewhere to really get some info. on alternative modalities.

It is about time someone gave us equine consumers the straight, objective and honest scoop in these questionable areas of horse therapy. So much money is made off of our ignorance and our trust that people tell us the truth about their products. We often forget that their motive may be economic, not necessarily just for the good of the horse. Thank you Dr. Ramey.

This book is a waste of money for people who are looking for good information on alternative care for their horse. The author considers any method other than his own to be unfounded and of no benefit. Could we say he is coming from a very egotistical point of view? I wonder how we and all the animals survived the thousands of years before modern medicine and his birth! The cover of the book is also cleverly laid out in order to trick the consumer who is interested in learning about alternative therapies into thinking the book will give them information on learning how to use complementary care. This was a total waste of my money.

The editor collected this set of articles in a very biased, one-sided and narrow fashion. No objectivity. The editor has obviously not had any experience dealing with horse situations where "modern/conventional" medicine has failed or under FEI competition rules where invasive techniques are illegal.

At least Dr. Ramey is consistent with his tenacious view of alternative therapies. I would be more interested if he were to turn the microscope on conventional vet medicine to see which procedures and techniques had the gold seal of the scientific method: double blinded, randomized and controlled. Medicine and the scientific method are both fantastic but there may be others....

was very disappointed and felt the author did a disservice to balanced critical review and assessment. I did agree with a number of the findings in the books but the author should have provided less personal opinion and adhered to balanced scientific review rather than providing sweeping generalisations of certain therapeutic modalities. Absolutely regret having bought this book.

Junk. The author wants a 'good 'ol boy' pat on the back from other veterinarians. "Atta boy, Davey, you tell 'em! Tell 'em all what quacks those alternative practitioners are. Atta boy! Sick 'em boy. Atta boy!" Oh why oh why doesn't Amazon allow for zero starts. Or even negative stars? The author does not know the first thing about alternative health care for man nor beast. Just a bias, non-open minded view. How do I know? Because he published the same kind of non-researched tripe about me. In one essay he lied about me at least three times. He probably thought I wouldn't see it. Don't believe ANYTHING this author writes. Go online and just read articles for free. This book is pure swill.

An excellent scientific approach that will no doubt send the oddball "alternative" therapy fans into a complete swoon. However, they'll not be able to come up with a single serious scientific article to refute the science in this book -- after many decades of frantic, fruitless attempts.

The sad fact is that these "alternative" therapies simply do not work, as far as any scientific study has ever been able to tell. And the few little studies they occasionally cite are scientifically worthless, as a bit of research always reveals.

This always brings out the worst in the homeopathic/chiropractic/crystal therapy/needle-stickers, etc., and they usually revert to claims that it's all just a plot by the evil veterinary/pharmaceutical community. A glance at some of the critical reviews on this site are typical -- you'll notice that they don't refer to any scientific publications or peer-reviewed journal articles ... because, sadly, they can't.

This will, also sadly, do little to dissuade those desperate and gullible souls who will grasp at anything hoping to help their four-legged friend. After thirty years in dog & horse rescue, I understand the feeling all too well, but after seeing the results of alternative medicine vs. real veterinary medicine, I know that alternative medicine is 99% pure moonshine and marketing.

This book should be required reading for all horse, dog & cat owners, period. We all need to know the facts in order to do right by our furry friends.