Homeopathy for AnimalsHomeopathy is becoming increasingly popular both for treating pets and their people. One of the things which appeals about homeopathy is that it treats the whole animal and not just the illness, as is the approach with conventional medicine. Nobody knows how homeopathy works, or even that it works at all. (At least this is yet to be scientifically proven; there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to support it). I keep a very open mind about alternative therapies and have found homeopathy effective in many cases.
Homeopathy uses remedies which are extremely dilute. The system works under the assumption that "like cures like". Therefore a substance which causes symptoms in a healthy subject similar to those caused by an illness, when given to a sick patient in very tiny amounts will cure the illness. The homeopathic system of medicine treats the whole animal not just the disease, so a nervous animal and an outgoing one would often get different homeopathic remedies for the same illness. (Using conventional medicine they would very often be given the same drug if they both had the same illness).
Conventional medicine is usually very good at treating the illness for which it has been prescribed, but it can sometimes produce unwanted side-effects. Such side-effects do not occur when using homeopathic medicines because the medicine is so dilute. (I have often heard of it being referred to as "magic water" because the active ingredient is not detectable). Conventional medicine and homeopathy can be used together with no risk of unwanted interactions between the medicines. Therefore homeopathy can be used as a complementary therapy while your animal is undergoing orthodox treatment.
Homeopathic medicines are easy to administer to pets. They come in the form of liquids, powders, or pills which generally have little taste and in the case of pills can dissolve on the tongue. It is practically impossible to overdose on homeopathic remedies and they are very cheap compared to many conventional medicines. Given the fact that there is little to lose in trying homeopathy for a given condition and that your pet can continue to receive any conventional treatment which may be necessary while on the homeopathic remedy, I would certainly consider it worth trying in any situation where the owner of an animal wished to do so. © Samantha Coe. All rights reserved. Further information, news and pet-related healthcare articles are available at vetbase.co.uk
Questions Answered
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diagnosed with a torn cruciate ligament (dog) (03-May-07 03:53PM)
Douglas asks:
Henry has been diagnosed with a torn cruciate ligament on a hind leg. He is 17 years old and our vet is not keen on any operation and said plenty of ... view
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back end pain (na) (06-Jun-07 06:59PM)
Al asks:
My 10 yr. old stonezu seemed very off one day. The next day he was yelping when you picked him up or put him down. I brought him to the vet ... view
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Wounds come up on head; round and blood red (cat) (01-Feb-07 06:40PM)
Charlene asks:
My cat has come up with round blood patches on his head; what are they? He is on antibiotics for a virus is this connected? ... view
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Upset tummy maybe or poison (dog) (01-Oct-07 08:43PM)
 Danny asks:
Hi there
Last week I found Lewy in our garden hacking up (not sick), just the noise. After checking his throat both internally ( as far as I could go), and feeling ... view
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Sleepy little hamster (na) (01-Oct-07 08:00PM)
Jess asks:
My new hamster is 6-7 weeks old. I got her from a shop on Friday and she is sleeping more than I think is normal. I know they are nocturnal, but ... view
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Nasal carcinoma (dog) (17-Mar-07 10:54AM)
Sheila asks:
Did you receive my questions re Max? i.e. what I can give him to help his breathing and make things easier for him. Please reply. Thank you ... view
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Pets for kids (bird) (22-Jan-07 11:08PM)
Amanda asks:
I am wondering what kind of animal you would recommend for a childs first pet My daughter is 6 and she is desperate for a pet but I never kept animals ... view
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recurring urinary infection about every 6 months (na) (01-Mar-07 09:21PM)
Nina asks:
Hi, my lurcher has been getting urinary tract infections about every 6 months for past 2 yrs., there has been blood in urine. Treated with antibiotics it clears up in couple ... view
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Cat pooing on my bed (cat) (21-Jan-07 10:58PM)
Tina asks:
Dear vet, my cat keeps pooing on my bed She does this every time I go out to work I have tried everything and now I think I might have ... view
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Lous keeps biting and chewing on her inner legs (dog) (02-May-07 02:22PM)
Terri asks:
Can I put Benadryl cream on her legs for the itch? ... view
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Over grooming (cat) (27-Feb-07 06:09PM)
Michele asks:
Thank you for your response. My cat has had a once over by vets and no flea problems. Her hind legs and stomach are bare due to over grooming. ... view
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My kitten can't control his bowels (cat) (17-Sep-07 12:39PM)
Rob asks:
I have a british blue kitten, 15 weeks old & although he is litter trained, he can't seem to control his bowels. His rear seems to be constantly leaking but he ... view
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Upset stomach (na) (10-Feb-07 10:29AM)
Bob asks:
Bella has been treated with an antibiotic and kaolin paste, wormed and vaccinated all within the last 3 weeks.
The upset stomach has recurred? ... view
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Polyneuroradiculopathy (dog) (10-Feb-07 09:43PM)
Emlyn asks:
I am trying to find out anything on the cause and or treatment of Polyneuroradiculopathy as I have an Irish Wolfhound with the disease. Any help would be very much appreciated ... view
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hair loss (dog) (31-May-07 06:16PM)
Edward asks:
My 20 month old staffordshire bull terrier has over a number of months lost just about all the hair on his stomach, chest, tops of inside of all legs and behind ... view
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found cat drooling, vomiting (cat) (01-Jul-07 01:53AM)
Lisa asks:
We found a cat under our deck. Our dogs cornered it and when we pulled it out from the deck, it was drooling and its fur was wet. It ... view
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flea control (na) (03-Oct-07 10:01PM)
Evelyn asks:
Sellers on Ebay are offering to sell Frontline Plus for large dogs along with instructions for dividing the dosage down to the appropriate amount for a cat. The idea is ... view
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Buying a non hip-scored pup (dog) (04-Feb-07 12:08PM)
Anna asks:
We have been searching for a Spanish Water dog for some time now, and I have recently been in contact with a breeder who will have a litter available in March. ... view
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Aggression towards us and agitation (cat) (01-Mar-07 11:22PM)
Sally asks:
Our cat Max has recently started to get very agitated and threatening if we do things like sweep the terrace. He is very vocal generally but lately seems disoriented and agitated. ... view
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Hasn't gone toilet in nearly 2 weeks (reptile) (05-Apr-07 02:12PM)
Owen asks:
Hi there,
My Northern Pine Snake hasn't gone to the toilet for almost 2 weeks. Am starting to worry about him, He has had 3 small Rats and a Chick in ... view
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Your Questions Answered
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Injured Wild Owl 30-Nov-07
Kelly asks:
I found an owl this morning, very small but adult. It flew into a power line. It's still alive. ... view
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swollen hind leg 20-Nov-07
 Zshai asks:
I have a 6-day-old bunny who has a swollen hind leg. I saw her mama step on her but ... view
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Sick syrian hamster 08-Nov-07
Sara asks:
Hi. My syrian hamster is 2 and half yrs. old. The last 24 hrs I have noticed a big ... view
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lack of sleep 07-Nov-07
Bill asks:
We have a 14 month old Yorkshire terrier, which goes to bed at around 6.30pm, because I have MS ... view
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wet tail 06-Nov-07
Evelyn asks:
Can a young hamster be successfully treated for wet tail and what would it roughly cost? ... view
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Alfie 06-Nov-07
Elaine asks:
Hi Sam
Thank you. Alfie has no feeding time he just has food in his bowl when he wants it ... view
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Guarding problem 05-Nov-07
 Elaine asks:
Alfie is a terrible guarder and will take your hand off if you try and retrieve an object he ... view
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White Gums and Dark Stool 02-Nov-07
Leslie asks:
My 8 week old American Bulldog has really white gums, around the eyes is also white. She has dark ... view
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Dog's Health 01-Nov-07
William asks:
My dog is around 11 years old, possibly older (we received her as she was taken from a bad ... view
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behaviour 31-Oct-07
Debby asks:
Hi Max is very lively of course but he seems to get very excited and bites the children, not ... view
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Blood in dog's stools 31-Oct-07
Lee asks:
Hi. We recently got a 3 year old Labrador from a friend. From what we can see she has ... view
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upset stomach 30-Oct-07
kat asks:
About three days ago my dog started acting like she was sick; diarrhoea and vomiting along with excessive sneezing ... view
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Blood in Poo 28-Oct-07
Mandy asks:
Treacle is now 9 wks old and had her first vaccination two days ago. I have noticed that at ... view
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neutering 27-Oct-07
 ashen1956 asks:
3 days ago Molly-Mae gave birth to 5 kittens. How long should I wait before having her neutered and ... view
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Ordering Insulin Online 26-Oct-07
Purdie asks:
Purdie is diabetic and I'm keen to find a way of reducing the cost of the treatment. Currently ... view
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Fleas and skin problem 26-Oct-07
Joanne asks:
I have two cats, a neutered tom and his sister. They are 6 and a half yrs. old. They ... view
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My cat has a hole in its stomach! 23-Oct-07
Sarah asks:
My cat has a hole the size of a dime in its stomach. He doesn't seem to be ... view
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labrador vomiting bile and nearly passing out 22-Oct-07
Paul asks:
Hi there - our five year old male labrador is generally in very good health - excellent appetite, plenty ... view
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Guinea pig fits 22-Oct-07
Renate asks:
My guinea pig is acting strange. I've only had him around a week and he's running as if spooked ... view
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feeding 22-Oct-07
Terry asks:
Is it safe to feed my GSD raw chicken wings, he is 16 months old and is 37 kg? ... view
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