Did you know your dog or cat has a hidden “superhighway” in their body that can calm anxiety, reduce inflammation, and even help with seizures?

It’s called the vagus nerve, and learning how to stimulate it could transform your pet’s health naturally. In this article, I’m breaking down what it is, how it works, and practical ways you can support your furry friend’s healing

If you’re curious about natural pet health and wellness, you’re in the right place. Let’s dig in.

Serious About Your Dog’s Vitality? Keep Your Dog Active and Thriving with Dr. Jones’ Ultimate Canine Advanced Plus Health Formula

Give your dog the best care with this all-in-one supplement packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Supports digestion, immune health, joints, skin, mobility, and energy—perfect for dogs of all ages, from playful pups to senior companions. Watch your furry friend thrive every day!

Holistic Support in Every Scoop: Dr. Jones’ Ultimate Canine Advanced Plus

A natural, powder-based supplement designed for daily use. Mix with food or treats for easy dosing. Available in 30-day and 90-day supplies for dogs up to 50lbs. For larger dogs, follow the dosing guide to ensure optimal benefits

Dr. Jones' Ultimate Canine Advanced Plus Health Formula — Dr. Jones’ Ultimate Canine Advanced Plus is a holistic, natural nutritional supplement designed to support the health and vitality of dogs. This formula is in powder format that you can mix with your dog’s food or a treat, and it comes in two sizes, a 30-day supply and a 90-day supply (based on dogs up to 50lbs – for larger dogs, refer to the dosing recommendations below to ensure optimal benefits).

Keep Your Cat Active and Healthy with Dr. Jones’ Ultimate Feline Health Formula

Crafted specifically for cats, this formula supports digestive health, immunity, skin and coat, and lean muscle. Packed with essential vitamins, antioxidants, and fatty acids, it helps your feline stay playful, resilient, and full of life.

Complete, All-Natural Nutrition for Graceful Aging

Dr. Jones’ Ultimate Feline Health Formula is a holistic daily supplement that enhances overall health and promotes long-term wellness, ensuring your cat ages gracefully while staying active and vibrant.

Formula is a complete, all-natural supplement designed to enhance your cat’s overall health, and help ensure graceful aging for your cat.

Vagus Nerve Stimulation and Pet Healing: How This Hidden Nerve Can Help Your Dog or Cat

Ever heard of the vagus nerve? Also called cranial nerve 10 or the “wandering nerve,” it’s one of the most fascinating parts of the nervous system. It travels throughout your dog’s, cat’s, and even your own body, connecting the brain to organs, controlling heart rate, breathing, digestion, and much more.

Lately, vagus nerve stimulation is making headlines for helping with anxiety, depression, chronic pain, rheumatoid arthritis, and even seizures. But is it real, or just another “woo-woo” treatment? Let me break it down for you.

What the Vagus Nerve Does

The vagus nerve has over 10,000 branches, connecting the brain to nearly every organ and regulating the parasympathetic nervous system—our “rest and digest” system.

Think about Tula, my 15-year-old dog. When she sees something stressful, like being put on a table for filming, her heart races, breathing speeds up, and she shakes with anxiety. But when her vagus nerve activates, it sends calming signals to her brain. Suddenly, her heart slows, her breathing steadies, and she feels calmer. That’s the power of this one nerve.

Gut Health and the Vagus Connection

Your pet’s gut and brain are constantly talking through the vagus nerve. Healthy gut bacteria signal the brain: “Relax, everything’s fine.” Without this connection, even the best probiotics can’t reduce anxiety. This is why stimulating the vagus nerve is so crucial—it helps regulate inflammation, anxiety, depression, and even gut disorders.

Clinical Benefits of Vagus Nerve Stimulation

Research shows stimulating the vagus nerve can:

Reduce chronic inflammation (arthritis, allergies, bladder inflammation)
Help manage anxiety and depression
Improve outcomes in epilepsy and seizure disorders
Support heart and gut health
Potentially decrease periodontal inflammation

Some clinics are even using implantable devices to stimulate this nerve in humans, showing up to 75% improvement in rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease. The results are impressive—and exciting for veterinary medicine too.

How Vagus Nerve Stimulation Differs From Drugs

Many newer drugs target specific inflammatory pathways, like cytokines or nerve growth factors. While effective, they often block 100% of these pathways, which can disrupt your pet’s immune system.

Vagus nerve stimulation is different. It’s not all-or-nothing. Instead, it modulates the response, sending pulsed signals to reduce inflammation without shutting down essential immune functions.

Veterinary Case Studies

1. Epilepsy in Dogs:
A 5-year-old Shetland Sheepdog with uncontrolled seizures received an implantable vagus nerve stimulator. The result? 87% reduction in generalized seizures. The only side effect was a slight cough, easily managed by adjusting stimulation.

2. Home Seizure Management:
External vagus nerve stimulation can also help at home. One method, ocular compression, gently presses the surface of your dog or cat’s eye for 5–10 seconds, potentially reducing seizure frequency or preventing seizures during early warning signs.

Practical Tips for Pet Owners

The vagus nerve is deep and tricky to access, but there are areas where it comes close to the surface—especially around the ear canal. I’ve experimented gently with Tula and my cat Cassian by applying moderate pressure above the ear canal. It can help calm anxiety and may even support chronic inflammatory conditions like feline lower urinary tract disease.

Devices are also being developed for external stimulation over the neck area, which could make this even easier in the future.

Why You Should Consider Vagus Nerve Stimulation

If your pet struggles with seizures, anxiety, chronic inflammation, or gut disorders, vagus nerve stimulation is worth exploring. It’s a natural way to tap into your pet’s own nervous system to support healing and calm.

For now, I’ll continue experimenting safely with Tula and Cassian, and I’ll share what works. If it’s effective, you can bet I’ll be letting you know.

Learn More

Click here to subscribe to Veterinary Secrets and get more natural pet health and wellness tips. When you sign up, I’ll even send you a free copy of my book.

Click to Get A Free Copy of My E-Book!

Dr. Andrew Jones' FREE e-Book — Join Thousands of Pet Owners on the Path to Natural Healing! Discover powerful holistic remedies for your dog or cat with Dr. Andrew Jones’ FREE e-Book. Learn about the best foods, vaccine alternatives, and effective at-home treatments for 24 common pet health issues. Start improving your pet’s health today – download now!