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Homeopathic Anecdotes |
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Ruff lives near Bath in a B&B/ Guest House. He has a wonderful life being played with and admired by visiting guests and lording it over all he surveys. Ruff has always been an active and healthy dog but has had one particular problem. Every summer he suffered from dreadful itching. He scratched, chewed himself, rolled furiously - anything to relieve the maddening discomfort. Poor Ruffie. The first stop was to our local Vet who did his best with conventional treatment. To relieve the itching Ruff was given a steroid injection which appeared to clear the problem almost immediately. But the following year, the same problem, the same treatment and again apparent relief. But shortly after the injection Ruff began to develop a bald patch on his neck. This was spreading fairly rapidly and the Vet had no solution. Ruff was sent to the local veterinary hospital for expert advice. A specialist and 4 students examined him. Ruff hated it. He was frightened being prodded and poked by 5 strangers, and became quite aggressive. Anyone would! Various possibilities were discussed but no helpful recommendations were made |
| Meanwhile the patch grew, spreading across his back - no irritation, no inflammation, just a growing area of hairlessness. Just when options appeared to be running out, a friend recommended homeopathy, and specifically Christopher Day who, it appeared, had worked magic with her cat. So the next stop was Chris's homeopathic surgery, Ruff sniffing around the office and feeling perfectly at home, and me doing what every pet owner loves to do - talking about their pet - its likes and dislikes, emotional problems, idiosyncrasies (and there were plenty of those), eating and sleeping habits, social interaction, and so on. The approach was so different - relaxed and non-threatening, not only for the me, the carer, but more importantly for Ruff, the pet. By the time the chat was finished Ruff was perfectly happy to be examined. The first discovery was a misalignment of a vertebra which was causing Ruff to lift one back leg while running. A rapid adjustment was made, Ruff squeaked with surprise ( as the misplaced vertebra popped back into place) and then he turned and licked his doctor. A dog's way of saying thank you. |  |
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And the skin problems? From our discussions Chris had identified the likely cause of both the skin irritation and the bald patch. Firstly the skin irritation was possibly caused by diet. Ruff had been fed predominantly tinned and dried food, just as the majority of dogs are, and it seemed likely that this was the underlying cause. So what should we feed our dogs? Fresh food, meat, tripe vegetables, rice- a good mixed diet - all explained in 'Feeding Dogs the Natural Way' by Christopher Day. To calm the skin Chris prescribed Sulphur. The combination of diet change and a short course of the Sulphur remedy has proved a great success. Since then Ruff has hardly been seen to scratch, apart from the occasion he acquired a flea! And the bald patch? It was suggested this was a likely side effect of the steroid injection which had been administered to stop the itching. Suddenly it seemed so obvious as the patch had spread from the point that had been injected. But nobody else had spotted it. The bald patch disappeared within a month. Most visits to the Vet for domestic pets involve some sort of dermatological problem. Homeopathy can mean a cure without any side effects - and hopefully no ongoing expense! |
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When big Cassie arrived, little Ruff was so upset and jealous, which is a common problem when introducing a new dog into the home. He was prescribed Lachesis to help calm him and overcome his jealousy. He's a great deal better now, though inevitably, some quarreling still goes on. And Cassie - she has also benefited from Chris's ministrations and from homeopathic remedies. She's a 'long' dog with a spine susceptible to 'slippage' On arrival she had a rather more obvious distortion than Ruff's which Chris quickly manipulated into place, and just as Ruff had done, she said thank you with a big lick. Cassie had been starved and neglected and had no experience of being a happy, carefree puppy. Chris prescribed Sepia to help rebalance her female 'workings' and Phosphorus to calm her and help her enjoy life again. Only months later Cassie is a beautiful, loving animal, winning prizes at the local dog shows, and charming everyone who meets her. I shall never cease to marvel at the forgiving nature of animals. She has a slight runny eye problem which we seem to have brought under control using Euphrasia. |
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Homeopathy and a good natural diet have worked for both these dogs on a range of physical and emotional problems which could otherwise have been very difficult to treat using conventional methods. The animal medicine cabinet contains an ever growing range of remedies to use in case of similar problems occuring. Apart from his skin treatment, Ruff has been switched from an annual vaccination against distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, and parvovirus to a homeopathic nosode giving the same protection without the side effects that can accompany the conventional vaccination. NB. Pet insurance, unlike most medical insurance policies for humans, includes homeopathic treatment for the insured animal. |
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