Page 13 - Winter 2011

Theofficebecamethenewfocalpoint.Itbringstheintricatenetworking taskstogether.Thisset-upisofvitalinteresttocontinuetheconnections between key people after changes in the IAVH Board. The continuity of knowledge and processes are essential for further developments. The firstresultsofthedevelopmentalworkareobvious,justcheckoutthe website (www.iavh.org). Several countries have also joined the IAVH.
ThestrategythatIhavefollowedasTreasurerwastouseouravail- able resources to develop new initiatives through targeted expenditure. It has succeeded by putting the financial foundation into current innova- tions.ThenoblegestureofJacquesMillemannwholefttheroyaltiesof the “Materia Medica of Homeopathic Veterinary Medicine” to the IAVH
alsocontributed.However,additionaleffortsareneededtoconsolidate ourachievements.
The Veterinary Materia Medica should be published in English very soon, which promises to add more revenue. Furthermore, the office of MarkusMayerhasexperienceswithfundraising(constructionofcase database). These projects require a longer term planning, which is why wehavecreatedafinancialplanin2011.Atthesametime,wehave adjusted the prices for the ZGTM and the BAHVS mag as well as the membership fee with effect from 2012. We also want to enable the researchareabycreatingaResearchCommittee.
Andreas Schmidt
National Report UK
Well the plethora of correspondence in the press about the EU propos- als never materialised. Instead we had a recurrence of the debate on raw foods. An aspect of homeopathy that is neglected by its opponents is the issue of ‘obstacles to cure’. This is so fundamental to successful homeopathic treatment that Hahnemann chose to include it in para- graph 3 of the Organon. So ‘homeopathic treatment’ of a patient involves more than just giving it a pill. Hahnemann mentions the issue of diet in several later paragraphs, and on this matter his thinking which was well ahead of his peers.
It is not surprising, then, that veterinary homeopaths have looked critically at commercial feeds, found them wanting, and sought an alternative.
There is now plenty of literature on this subject, but in UK we are also fortunate in having more than one company who provide raw food for dogs and cats. My own dogs have for many years thrived on raw meaty bones, mainly chicken wings, and leftovers from the table. The debate
among rumbles on in the veterinary press, but its prominence is evi- dence of the increasing popularity, among animal owners and vets alike, of the RMB (raw meaty bones) and BARF (Bones and Raw Food) diets.
In events more directly linked to homeopathy, the Faculty of Homeopathy held practical examinations for the qualification of Veterinary Membership (VetMFHom). Up until two years ago candidates took two three hour written examinations, and if successful, progressed to a half-day practical and viva voce exam. Since a change in regula- tions took place, the teaching centre involved is now responsible for assessing the preparedness of the candidate, who then only has to sub- mit the necessary case histories, and take the practical exam. Two can- didates, Sandra Patzner and Vivienne Swift, were successful in the recent exams and will be awarded the VetMFHom. Both came through the HPTG course. It should be noted that the changes in assessment only apply to UK students. For those on overseas courses, the ‘old’ regu- lations remain in force. So many congratulations to Sandra and Vivienne.
Taos Conference
3-7 October 2011 A Report by Marcie Falleck
I have recently returned from probably one of the best conferences I have ever attended. It was a five-day seminar on the homeopathic treatment of cancer, presented by Sue Armstrong, veterinary homeopath from the UK. This was our third conference in Taos and our second one with Sue and her devoted band of American and Canadian veterinary home- opaths – 17 strong – that made the long and arduous (for me almost 48 hours) trip to Taos, New Mexico well worth it.
Sue has been focusing much of her recent efforts towards the treatment of cancer; in fact, she is in the process of writing a textbook for fellow homeopaths. As she treats many humans, as well as animals, she has the enor- mous advantage of hearing first hand, and therefore understanding the sensations and the mentals that go along with the various forms of the disease.
Initially, she reviewed and updated some of the lectures from the previous conference, for the benefit of those who had not attended last time. She re-examined the recent advances in the conventional understanding of cancer, as well as their newest methods of treatment. She feels that it is critical that we know what our conventional colleagues are up to, in order to both understand and to address the negative effects of these treatments, and work around or
with them, as necessary, and also to acknowl- edge that occasionally these new cutting edge therapies can be useful. She, like Hahnemann before her, is constantly evolving in her under- standing of disease, and experimenting and expanding her treatment repertoire. Our goal, after all, is to help these dogs live both longer and with more quality filled time. For example, she now feels that biopsy of fine needle aspi- rates can be very useful in helping us discover the most appropriate remedy, and is not the danger that I, at least, was under the impres- sion of it could be in terms of aggravating and spreading the cancer in a high percentage of cases. She has found that a dose of Staph 200 given immediately after the procedure can help to reduce the risk.
We discussed the advances in the genetic understanding of cancer and how that corre- sponds so well to our miasmatic interpretation of disease. (so ‘they’ are catching up with Dr. Samuel!) We spent a lot of time talking about cancer and the soil of injury, how chronic inflammation plays such a huge role in the development of cancer. In the past two years, Sue has built upon the knowledge that she had explored during the last session, regarding cancer and its strong relationship with inflam- matory processes. Chronic inflammations any- where in the body, are therefore, she has
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