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Chris eventually took over the practice from his parents and it became the Alternative Veterinary Medicine Centre. It was a ground breaking practice where a holistic approach and the use of homeopathy was at the centre of all that he did. He spread the word about homeopathy enthusiastically and energetically, giving hundreds of talks to the general public.
In 1982, he was one of the founder members of the British Association of Homeopathic Veterinary surgeons (BAHVS), where he was secretary for over thirty years, and President from 2017 to 2020. In the early 1980’s he became involved with the Faculty of Homeopathy and oversaw the admission of veterinary surgeons and the creation of the veterinary training course. In 1984, his book The Homeopathic Treatment of Small Animals was published, now in its third edition it is still one of the best introductory books on the subject. In 1986 he was a founding member of the International Association for Veterinary Homeopathy and played a leading role in its development and in 1995 he became leader of the veterinary course at the Homeopathic Physicians Teaching Group (HPTG), which was responsible for teaching a whole new generation of homeopathic vets.
Chris’s death really does mark the end of an era for veterinary homeopathy in the UK, he was a truly unique individual; passionate, determined, forthright in his views, a man of a piercing intellect and capacious intelligence who helped bring homeopathy into modern veterinary practice and who inspired the next generation of vets by giving them the confidence to practise homeopathy in their own ways. Chris lived and breathed homeopathy; in his early years in practice, he must have felt a lone voice at times championing the work that he loved and challenging his conventional colleagues. He was unwavering in his belief and commitment to his work and achieved
extraordinary results. This was also coupled with a humility about his role in the process; I heard him say on many occasions that it wasn’t him that doing the healing but the remedies stimulating the body to heal itself. Chris became well known for his work and had a huge number of loyal clients. He was always interested in their stories and had a patience and kindness around animals that was clear to see.
He suffered a heart attack several years ago whilst giving one of his many public talks, luckily there was a nurse in the audience who was able to carry out CPR and another quick-thinking audience member who had a homeopathic first aid kit to hand and was able to administer remedies at appropriate times. Chris subsequently underwent heart surgery and was able to return to work. He credited the homeopathic remedies with the speed of his recovery and
went on to be busier than ever, finding it hard to turn clients away or reduce his working hours, recognising the great demand for homeopathy and a holistic approach from animal owners.
I came to know him well when I became Junior Vice President of BAHVS in 2017 and he was President. We had planned a series of meetings around the country to promote homeopathy but our plans were turned upside down when the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons changed their position statement on complementary therapies, making it more difficult for vets to practice homeopathy as a first line treatment. Chris was outraged at the decision and threw himself into the campaign to get the statement reversed; exploring legal routes, letter writing and joining the protest marches to the RCVS
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