Acupuncture could work. I’m all for healing dogs with new methods. I’m constantly reading up on WebVet.com that discusses health and wellness for animals. Now I can understand more about how to take care of my dog if he gets sick.

Dana Ullman is quite correct, the easy rationalization that it is all "placebo" (sic) represents an abdication of scientific thinking and actually sabotages progress.

Sharon Begley is quite correct, in her article, to point out the absurdity of Parks' position.  

In addition, a recent report indicates a surprisingly high per centage of MD's utilizing placebo drugs, without telling their patients.  This is not only dangerous and unprofessional but also offers some insight into the  intellectual bankrupcy of the old school medicine - perhaps it is time for them to start learning and prescribing REAL medicine, HOMEOPATHY.   What's that?  You think it's "just water"?  Get real, science does not even know fully what "just water" is.   Look at the overwhelming clinical results and lack of side effects.   It is, anti-science innuendoists like Park that are the only threat to real scientific progress.

Robert Park sees all unconventional medical treatments as a placebo because these treatments do not fit his worldview.  Actually, I have found that he maintains a quite unscientific attitude because he disses things that he doesn't understand, and rather than acknowledge this or have some degree of humility, he tries to demean the various alternative medical treatments.  Next, he will probably says that research on the use of homeopathic medicines in the treatment of plants  and cell cultures (yes, there are studies here) are the result of placeboes.  

I had a cat that was paralyzed in his hind quarters as a result of some kind of accident. A traditional vet said that the X-ray showed nothing and that the animal would need to be put down. An certified vetinary acupuncturist ran his fingers down the cat's spine and said, "Here's the problem." The cat began to recover with the first treatment. Within two months, the cat was back to normal--and lived another 10 years feeling fine and dandy. At 17, he died from liver failure.