Homeopathic medications like Traumeel and Zeel are lifesavers for dogs & cats. Traumeel is used when a pet has a trauma—fall down stairs, broken tooth, surgery, etc. Zeel is used when a dog or cat has arthritis. Research shows Zeel is as helpful as NSAIDs, or aspirin-like drugs.
Combination homeopathics
Traumeel & Zeel are examples of combination homeopathic medications. They’re designed to alleviate multiple problems with one medication and are ideal for complex problems. Unfortunately, many classically trained homeopaths don’t believe they can be useful so they don’t prescribe them. It’s a pity since there are some amazing combination meds available for dogs & cats. I think the combination products tend to be more like traditional Chinese herbal formulas in that they include many herbs balanced to solve problems and prevent side effects.
Single ingredient homeopathics
We also have single ingredient homeopathics, like sulphur or nux vomica. Sulphur is helpful for skin diseases, such as demodex; nux vomica is helpful for illness caused by over indulgence, such as ingesting too much roast beef.
Difficulty in administering homeopathics
As useful as they are, homeopathics aren’t used very often in veterinary medicine. I think they’re under-prescribed because they are difficult to give correctly and if not given correctly they don’t work. When they don’t work, they get a reputation as being useless.
Homeopathics will work when given by themselves and into an empty mouth, so the pet cannot have eaten for a while. Homeopathics are given so they are absorbed into the body through the mucous membranes of the mouth rather than swallowed and absorbed through the stomach. This method is unlike that used for herbs and most conventional meds that can be given with food and are intended to be swallowed.
Homoepathic medications are like the smell of a rose, profound, but subtle.
It helps to understand why homeopathics are given in an empty mouth if you think of them rather like the scent of a rose. In a busy kitchen full of smells, the scent of a rose won’t be perceived; it’s just too subtle. In a mouldy basement, the smell of a rose would be lost. In a slaughter house, even the word rose seems lost, and the concept of the smell of a rose, ridiculous. Pet mouths can be like a kitchen full of odors if they’ve just eaten. When the pet has severe dental disease or oral injection, the mouth odor can be as oppressive as a basement or slaughter house—not the environment in which a homeopathic has a hope of working.
Timing of homeopathics
For homeopathic meds to be effective, they need to be given in isolation. Thus, homeopathics are usually given half an hour before meals or at least an hour after, but these are just guidelines. What’s really important is what does the mouth smell like?. Here’s a human example: if we brush our teeth with a strong toothpaste or gargle with a strong mouthwash the smell will last much longer than if we drank some green tea. Thus, we’d wait longer after brushing our teeth to take a homeopathic than we’d need to wait after drinking green tea.
For dogs and cats, if we feed sardines, it will take longer for their mouths to be clear of the fish essence than if they have consumed only light broth.
Medicating sick dogs and cats
Many ill pets are fed only a light broth, and this makes giving homeopathic meds easy because we don’t have to wait long after meals to medicate them. As pets recover and receive regular diets, we have to wait longer after meals before we can give homeopathic meds. Thus, in terms of how much time we have to spend medicating dogs and cats, it’s often easier to use homeopathics for really sick pets than it is to use them in normal pets.
Crushing the homeopathic pills & tablets
The best technique for giving homeopathics is to use pellets or tablets which are crushed into a powder. I crush them between two spoons then use the spoon to slide the powder inside the lower lip so that the powder rests between the lip and gum.
Liquid homeopathics contain alcohol
I don’t recommend liquids because they are preserved with alcohol for two reasons. First, pets dislike alcohol. Occasionally you’ll find a horse that drinks beer, but I’ve never seen a dog or cat like alcohol. The second reason is that I can’t understand the wisdom of surrounding a homeopathic med with alcohol. It is, afterall, as subtle as the smell of a rose.
Injectable homeopathics
Injectable homeopathic meds come in little vials. Injectables are balanced with saline so they don’t sting when injected. These meds can be used orally, too. They are pulled up with a syringe, the needle removed and the syringe used to place drops the space between the lip and gum. This method is well tolerated, even by cats.
