Page 13 - Autumn 21

As homeopaths we seem to beat ourselves up if we fail to identify it but given the levels of obstacle to cure in these unparalleled times, we can hardly be surprised. I would like therefore to encourage my colleagues who struggle with the pursuit of this ideal to be kinder to themselves.
For a medicine to be deep and permanent it needs to resonate with all levels of the being from mental, local and general (behavioural, emotional). This can be difficult to ascertain in animals that have lived long and complex lives with too many interferences that throw them off balance energetically. Most cases I have had in the years of my practice have been these confused and difficult chronic cases of disease that we can only hope to unravel or peel back to some semblance of health...and we do. The beauty and power of homeopathy never ceases to thrill me. My understanding of a constitutional remedy is one that matches the animals picture is health and well as disease presentation.
I was surprised recently by two cases that I took a chance on terming constitutional remedies and this is an account of these short cases. For me it serves as an illustration of the power of the constitution as far as I understand it to apply to animals when it is arguably also the totality of presenting signs and symptoms.
Enter the new cases in young animals that are just starting to navigate their world and be amazed at how they can be set on a trajectory of good health with ONE dose of a well selected (Constitutional?) medicine.
Murray, a male red standard groodle (golden retriever/standard poodle cross) presented for his 12 week, C3 vaccination after having had a yeasty left ear and some preputial discharge from his 6 weeks C3. If dogs show these normal vaccine reactions (and usually even if they don’t), I give them Thuja30 single dose and he had 2 doses, one at 9 weeks and again at 12 weeks of age.
He was a nervy, jumpy puppy but seemed to be learning well and the owners were very considerate of his sensitivity. He is what we term in Australia at present “a covid puppy” meaning the opportunities for normal socialisation and training experiences is seriously hampered by social restrictions. We thought he would grow out of this being a clever dog. As a singularly attractive animal he also attracted more attention than he required and by 4 months of age he was developing what appeared to be a fear of approach by people seeking to pat him without his approval.
I considered Gels for this but there was something more determined in his presentation that felt more like resentment and we thought it was more like “grudge” behaviour that these people just weren’t listening to him.
He got NitAc M one dose. He was not nasty but he was clear in his intention and seemed offended not to be obeyed.
2 months later it seemed that it had helped him a little to gain confidence but it did not help him to accept human attention, only now he would bark if you looked at him. He would hold eye contact in a way that the owners described as “ reptilian”,(he has yellow eyes). He felt threatened but was holding his ground and was not ever pushed to be aggressive even though there was marked uncertainty. He was perfectly normal with other dogs and enjoyed their company. I did not feel scared of him but it was unsettling because he was trying to tell us something that was not really clear and he has a very loud sharp sudden bark that makes you jump. I felt like he did not want to feel like this.
He was having more itchy ear trouble and they were hot and smelly but his main problem was behavioural. He was agitated and unsatisfied.
He preferred to be outside and started to patrol his territory which is not unusual for a young male dog. He
hates birds and worries about them a lot. At this stage I gave him some Elaps30 for his yeasty (black waxy) ears and some PhosLm1 to try to ground him but Phos was not especially indicated other than I thought he had a clairvoyant quality about him and hoped it may help to calm his nervous system.
A month later, ears fine but he was developing fear based possessiveness and a screech bark indicating his level of distress over protecting his space. I gave him Australian Bush Flower (Grey Spider Flower) and Bach (cherry plum,vine) mix for fear and that worked quite well to help him be calm enough to learn more.
At 10 months of age it was becoming clearer to me what needed to be fixed and also what he was. He was...still a bit worried about certain people. Not overly friendly with me here but just keeping away not threatening. Getting ratty every evening before dark. Protective of property. Starting to become sexual but not excessive. If I don’t know you “DON’T TOUCH ME”. Playful, destructive, demanding but knows not what for, not likes birds, not eats much to keep his energy, loves brushing and hard stroking/rubbing. Plus I felt he was extraordinarily sensitive to vibrations and all that for me indicates a spider medicine. I don’t use any computerised repertory in my practice, so I apologise for not providing more thorough repertorisation in my cases here. I took a chance it was the right medicine because it had enough rubrics in support.
Murray got one dose of Tarent 200C (Hisp) and a month later he was an entirely different dog.
He came up to kiss my hand 4-5 times and nuzzle my armpit in a tender way, which was a humbling experience. He was still a little nervous but a lot calmer and more confident on the whole, plus he was smiling, literally smiling. He was finally comfortable in his own skin and was able to relax and enjoy life....still hates birds but I would imagine all spiders do.
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