Page 17 - Autumn 21

BAHVS Autumn meeting 2021 – Babbinswood Farm, Shropshire, UK Report by Jane Keogh
Sometime back in July the BAHVS held a committee meeting. At this meeting they discussed how they felt about not having met face-to-face for so long due to the various restrictions we had all endured. At some point our president used the words ‘we have to adopt a ‘can do’ approach’ and hence it was decided we should hold a proper face-to-face meeting – no matter what. The issue of the venue was solved by Barbara Jones offering to host it at her organic farm in Oswestry, right on the border of Shropshire and Wales. This might be the nearest we get to holding the conference in Wales – but who knows?
Vice president Brendan [Clarke] chipped in with an offer to sort the IT and make sure that those in far flung corners of the earth like USA, Australia and Denmark could join in on the dreaded Zoom, and the word was put out for cases to be presented.
And so it came to be that various intrepid members congregated at Babbinswood Farm on October 17th for a vegetarian dinner in the barn and sank a few beers before sloping off to bed in various modes of accommodation, from rooms in the farm to motor homes and tents, and in one case the car.
The following morning more arrived to swell the throng for the AGM then in the afternoon we kicked off with ‘Ace’ a cat with seizures presented by Ann wood. Ace was only a year old but had already been treated for flu with a high temperature, and then developed seizures. He had two fits, two weeks apart, each after a bout of sneezing. He would scream, then his paws would move as if kneading bedding, though his legs and body were stiff. On the basis of this he was prescribed Cuprum met 30C daily and given Thuja as a clearing remedy.
Ace had a further fit after 3 weeks on the medication (5 weeks after the last fit). This fit was of shorter duration, with no vocalisation and a quicker recovery. The Cuprum met was continued on a daily regime and Nux vomica given weekly initially, on a constitutional basis.
Ann also discussed rubrics for the case and possible causes of the fitting, including the possibility that Ace may have had Covid-19.
She ended her presentation with an amusing reference to the sporting success of the British tennis player Emma Raducanu: “In conclusion (especially in the context of recent sporting success) I should like to thank very sincerely, all members of the BAHVS Committee for the opportunity to serve you this Ace; and to thank all in attendance, by whatever means, for the useful return volleys you sent me, helping me to raise my game. Special thanks for not dropping me when I was set to miss the meeting point. Your determination and support proved more than a match for the occasion. The future looks promising; more power to Emma’s elbow - and to ours!”
Ann’s excellent presentation was followed by our treasurer, Sara Fox Chapman, giving a presentation on Syringomyelia. She began with an explanation of the condition and the conventional treatment and supportive care ... I suspect I was not the only person grateful to have some revision on Syringomyelia, and Sara’s presentation was clear and informative. This was followed by a discussion of 2 cases of Syringomyelia successfully treated with homeopathy.
First was Parker, an 11 year-old neutered female Cavalier King Charles spaniel. Presenting symptoms included ataxia, phantom scratching, a facial twitch and occasional
head shaking. Repertorisation of the case came up with a clear Sulphur constitutional and she was treated with Sulphur LM1 and acupuncture. A marked improvement followed, apart from a brief period when the owner lost the homeopathic tablets; the return of face twitching was quickly reversed once back on the remedy.
The second case was Stassi, a 6 y.o. neutered female Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. She showed symptoms of phantom scratching, fly snapping and face rubbing. Repertorisation came up with Pulsatilla and she was given Pulsatilla LM1. After 3 weeks she was showing dramatically decreased phantom scratching and almost no fly catching.
It is always an inspiration to see proof of how effective homeopathy can be in resolving serious clinical conditions, and Sara’s presentation was just such an inspiration.
Sara was followed by Edward De Beukelaer presenting on Zincum phosphoricum. Edward started by discussing the case of Dizzy, an enthusiastic rescue Boxer, whose owner brought her to see him after surgery for removal of a Mast Cell Tumour. The wound had been slow to heal and further tumours had now appeared. The history showed a bright, energetic, outgoing dog who loved her family and who had a fear of sudden noises, but who had become quieter since surgery.
Repertorisation put Phosphorus, Zincum Phosphate and Zinc as the top three choices.
Edward prescribed Zincum phos 30C twice weekly. After 2 weeks Dizzy was much livelier, was tolerating noise better and her surgical wound was healing well. She was prescribed Zincum phos 200C every 3 days. Another 3
15
continued on p16