*Acupressure - Massage of acupuncture points usually with the fingers.

*Acupuncture (aka dry needles) - Fine taper point solid needles are inserted into acupuncture points.  These dry  needles are left in for variable amounts of time, depending upon the desire to sedate or tonify  the acupuncture point(s), usually 10 - 20 minutes.

*Aquapuncture - Insertion of liquid, usually B-12, into the acupuncture points through a small gauge needle.  This technique works well for the pets that do not like to hold still for the time needed for acupuncture.  ​

*Electrical Acupuncture - Taper point solid needles are inserted into the acupuncture points with stimulation of these points by mild electrical impulses.  This works well for those cases that have paralysis of muscle groups or nerves (as long as the nerve's myelin sheath is intact) ​

*Laser Acupuncture​ - ​​Laser acupuncture combines two techniques- cold laser therapy and acupuncture (see acupuncture description above). Laser acupuncture can be done a couple of different ways.

• It can either be used to stimulate acupuncture points in place of acupuncture needles, or
• it can be used for extra stimulation of acupuncture needles.

 
Regardless of the technique used, the general theory of acupuncture is all the same- stimulating specifically chosen acupuncture points for a systemic effect.  Some animals tolerate acupuncture needles better than others. Likewise, some pets tolerate certain acupuncture points on their body better than other points depending on the specific condition being treated.
 
In these cases where acupuncture needles are too powerful and not tolerated by the pet, a cold laser can be used to specifically target that acupuncture point.  This method is less powerful and consequently can be more comfortable than acupuncture needles but can still be effective in stimulating an acupuncture point when a pet is overly sensitive.
 
Along the same thought process, electroacupuncture (stimulation of acupuncture needles with a small electrical current) is more powerful than just “dry needles.” This technique is typically used to provide a stronger treatment for better/ longer lasting effects, however, electroacupuncture is sometimes too strong for some patients to tolerate. In these situations where a pet needs more than just a dry needle treatment, but cannot tolerate electroacupuncture, laser therapy can be applied over the dry acupuncture needles for added stimulation.