CASSELTON (AP) - Madison Lyon sprawls out on the exam table in a room filled with soothing sounds of wind chimes and waterfalls.

Lying still, the 10-year-old waits as Dr. Brad Bartholomay prepares several tiny needles that will puncture her skin in an effort to relieve pain that courses through sore muscles and joints.

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese therapy that consists of stimulating certain points on the body's surface to improve systems' functions.

But the girl in Bartholomay's Casselton clinic is an unlikely candidate for the nontraditional remedy.

Madison is a German shepherd who is more attuned to romping on her Felton, Minn., farm than sampling Eastern healing techniques.

As pet owners watch traditional ways of curing ailments such as arthritis, disc disease or other muscle and skeletal problems fail, more people are turning to alternative medicine including acupuncture, Bartholomay says.

"I don't do this because I hate Western medicine. Western medicine is good," says Bartholomay, a practicing veterinarian for 16 years in Casselton, a community of roughly 1,900 people 20 miles west of Fargo.

"But Western medicine can't cover everything. Chinese medicine is touted for more chronic conditions."

Veterinary acupuncture differs from traditional Western medicine by focusing on changes in the body that prompt the symptoms of a complaint. Treatment revolves around localizing a point in the body for therapy, which is believed to improve other conditions causing discomfort.

Western medicine focuses on diagnosing a disease behind an ailment. Medication is usually prescribed to solve the problem.

About 1,600 veterinarians worldwide are certified to practice the therapy, according to the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society. The Fort Collins, Colo., organization certifies veterinarians to perform acupuncture.

Bartholomay said acupuncture results are generally "pawsitive."

Madison, a docile canine with coarse brown-black fur and ears that sharply prick at the suggestion of a treat, is one example of a successful acupuncture case.

She happily licks Bartholomay's face as he skillfully palpates his hands across her body. She lies stoic after receiving a small tranquilizer injection. Bartholomay hooks up wires from an electoacupuncture stimulator machine, which transmits electrical current to her acupuncture points through several needles stuck in her body.

The treatment is a complex science that Bartholomay says he's still mastering, although he's been certified in the practice for six years.

Often clients seek out acupuncture services as a last resort to other therapies that haven't worked, says Terri Yeager, a licensed veterinary technician who works with Bartholomay.

In particular, acupuncture has helped several animals that once were paralyzed to walk again, Yeager says.

"He gets a lot of 'you're my last hope' situations," she says.

"They didn't walk and they walked. It's just amazing."

Madison's owner, Jeanette Lyon, is the first to admit she was skeptical when a friend suggested acupuncture to treat Madison's stiff joints and arthritis. But as Madison struggled to climb stairs around Lyon's home and wasn't as easily able to play with the family's other pets, Jeanette decided to give acupuncture a shot.

The dog began treatment about a year ago with weekly visits. Since Madison's condition is improving, she now visits Bartholomay every eight weeks.

Lyon says acupuncture is worth the investment. Sessions for Madison cost about $75 for an hour. That isn't any more expensive than a traditional anti-inflammatory medicine would run, she said.

"She has the mind of a puppy but the body of a grandma," Lyon says. "(Acupuncture) has helped quite a bit. It's really changed the way she moves."

The Casselton Veterinary Service is one of a few clinics in the region to offer acupuncture services for animals.

Bartholomay typically performs acupuncture on eight to 10 animals a day, with some clients traveling from as far away as Bismarck and Minot for the services.

While dogs and cats most commonly receive the treatment, horses are also frequent patients.

People who have animals that participate in competitions, such as rodeo horses or agility dogs, are particularly keen on the therapy, Bartholomay said.

A recent 20,000-square-foot expansion to the clinic has created more space to offer alternative medicine services as well as traditional methods to the facility's hundreds of clients.

And as word spreads of acupuncture for animals, Bartholomay imagines customers will keep coming.

"There are some clients who just want the alternative," he said.