Homeopathy for Dogs

I have been using homeopathy for the past seventeen years, and have treated thousands of dogs (and other animals). I would like to share a case. Happily, this example is not unusual, it is typical of the 'miraculous' results that we can see using this energy modality. Every case is unique, however, and the story of this dog is among my favorites. One of the most important keys to this kind of success story is, however, possibly a leap of faith and good owner compliance: Enjoy!

MIMOSA

Mimosa was quite a character. A seven-year-old, female West Highland White Terrier, she first came to me accompanied by her guardian, Nicole. She had recently received a dire prognosis: she had been diagnosed with advanced kidney and liver failure and was given a month to live, both by her regular veterinarian and the board-certified neurologist from the referral hospital. Nicole had sought veterinary help because her canine friend had developed seizures. She was told that Mimosa’s immune system was severely compromised and that she would shortly die of general organ failure. Despite the daily subcutaneous fluid therapy and the two medicines prescribed, her condition was deteriorating rapidly.

Not wanting to give up on her beloved dog, Nicole quickly called for an appointment when she heard about my homeopathic practice from a friend. Nicole was very familiar with homeopathy, as both she and her family had used it for themselves successfully in the past, and she was hopeful it could help her dog.

I remember well our initial consultation. Although the conventional diagnosis seemed grim and the blood work was concerning, Mimosa in no way looked like a dying dog to me. She had quite a strong vital force and was a tough, determined little girl who knew her mind; this dog did not want to die. I felt very confident that with good holistic care, Mimosa would improve. I switched her food immediately from a low-grade commercial diet to a raw, homemade one, stopped the drugs that I felt were harming rather than enhancing the function of her kidneys and liver, and started her on a homeopathic regime along with carefully selected nutritional supplements to support her failing organs.

The first remedy that I prescribed was Nux Vomica, which is derived from the seeds of an Asian tree. It is a clearing remedy that can help the body detoxify from the ill effects of drugs, which I felt were part of the presenting symptom picture. It is also of great use for the toxicity caused by kidney and liver failure. The mental picture is of a strong type A personality, which is what I felt Mimosa was, despite her weakened state. Each remedy has both a mental and a physical state, and because homeopathy follows the dictum of like treats like, it is important that both the mental and physical state or symptoms of the patients match that of the remedy. Mimosa responded immediately, Nicole reported happily at our follow-up appointment. She was her old mischievous self, full of energy, running around like a puppy again. The new blood work, although not yet completely normal, was dramatically better. They began to call Mimosa the “miracle dog” at the local dog run.

As time went on, I treated Mimosa for many other issues. When she was ten years old, she presented a new challenge. Like so many New York City dogs, Mimosa had both a city and a country home. And like so many of them, she would get depressed when she returned to New York. Life was just more fun chasing squirrels and running on the beach rather than being leashed and walking on the sidewalk. Being the stubborn, willful little creature that she was, Mimosa took it a step further: she became moody and withdrawn, refusing to even look at her owner, angry and sulky that she wasn’t getting her way and staying in the Hamptons. She put on weight, refused to budge and brooded. 'Indifference to those loved best' is that state described in the Materia Medica, or the book which is the compilation of all known homeopathic remedies, in which you do not show the love you truly feel for your beloved. This is a key indication for the use of Sepia, a homeopathic remedy made from the ink of the cuttlefish. This striking symptom, now evidenced by Mimosa's behavior towards Nicole, combined with her low energy, increase in weight and general apathy, confirmed my remedy selection, and, indeed, with it Mimosa returned to her usual high spirits, despite being back in the Big Apple.

At eleven years old, while running on the beach, Mimosa tore her anterior cruciate ligament. This is a knee injury that veterinarians see relatively often in dogs. Although the orthopedic surgeon insisted that the dog needed surgery to repair the leg, again, homeopathy came to the rescue. I would say that about 80% of my patients with torn ACL ligaments respond to homeopathy and do not need surgery. Many of them heal with the remedy Calcarea Carbonica, a substance derived from the inside of an oyster shell. It is a remedy with a particularly strong affinity for bone and joint issues, including weakness of ligaments and inflammation of the knee. Given the typically stubborn disposition of the patient who needs this remedy, I felt it fit the case, both mentally and physically. Within a few short weeks, Mimosa was as good as new.

At twelve, Mimosa started to slow down, and she settled into the sweet mellowness of older age. During these years, she developed a myriad of minor issues, such as crystals in the urine, ear and eye infections, even Lyme Disease, all of which I was able to treat homeopathically. But at fifteen and a half, she began to show serious signs of aging, and Nicole was becoming desperate thinking about how she would live without her best buddy, the longest and best relationship she has ever had, she told me — a comment that I often hear! “My friends are so worried about me,” Nicole said. “How will I ever go on without little Mimosa?” So in preparation for the inevitable, Nicole acquired an adorable Yorkie puppy she named Missy. As is typical, the new puppy immediately adored her older 'sister,' but Mimosa seemed to pay her no need. Indeed, at sixteen she was virtually blind and deaf, and when I saw her in December, I knew it was time that she move on to the next plane. She had been given a death sentence at seven and was now sixteen, having lived an extra nine fabulous years, but the body cannot go on forever. It was time. Nicole had known that in her heart for a while now, but like many owners, needed the confirmation from her trusted veterinarian.

Nicole told me that in the taxi on the way home from my office, she set up an appointment for the house-call vet to euthanize Mimosa the following day. What she related to me next put a chill up my spine and brought tears to my eyes. The next morning, Mimosa grabbed her beloved stuffed animal — the one she couldn’t be without for even one day of her life, the one Nicole had to have Fed-Exed to the country when she forgot it one weekend, the one even Nicole wasn’t allowed to touch, the one Mimosa had not played with for weeks. Mimosa took that toy and ran from room to room and, completing the tour around the apartment, dropped it at Missy’s feet. Mimosa then retired to her bed and waited for the vet to come. She knew, and she was ready. After Mimosa’s peaceful passing, Missy took the heretofore-untouched toy and immediately started playing with it. Mimosa died ten days after the arrival of Missy, whose presence, it seemed, gave her permission to leave. She knew how difficult it would be for her beloved mistress to be alone, and she had waited.

The baton had been passed. Excerpt by Dr. Marcie Fallek from the book Your Dog's Golden Years www.SeniorDogBooks.com