Homeopathic Treatment of Horses, Cattle, Dogs, Sheep and Swine



TREATMENT.- Arnica. The parts should be bathed with Arnica lotion immediately after the operation, and a few doses of Arnica as prepared for internal use should be given; this will often prevent fever and undue swelling. Should inflammatory symptoms set in. Aconitum should be administered every one, two, or three hours, according to the urgency of the symptoms. If there be swelling of the abdomen Arsenicum will be of service.

COLD – CATARRH – CORYZA – HOOSE

Cold is a general term for a disorder which affects different parts of the body, generally the head, windpipe, or chest. As a rule, Coryzas in the dog consists of inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose. If the cold is neglected, the lungs and other organs may become seriously affected, and consumptive diseases, distemper, and even glanders, may develop themselves. Catarrh, however slight, should therefore receive prompt attention, as it is the precursor of such serious and fatal diseases.

CAUSES. – Sudden changes of temperature; exposure to a draught of air when heated; drinking cold water when heated; cold and wet weather, or applying cold water to the skin of the animal when sweating, and not afterwards drying it. See, also, under “Bronchitis”.

SYMPTOMS. – More or less fever; want of liveliness and activity; loss of appetite; frequent sneezing or snorting; dry, husky cough, which in the cow has the sound of hoose; discharge of thin, watery mucus from the eyes and nostrils, which are also red and swollen; sometimes the throat is sore and the glands are swollen; then follow difficulty in swallowing both food and water, and derangements of the urine and bowels. Under proper treatment febrile symptoms disappear, the nasal discharge becomes thick and plentiful, the appetite and spirits return, and the animal recovers.

Catarrh is characterised by cough, nasal discharge, and sore throat; it attended with less debility and fever than Influenza, with less enlargement of the glands than Strangles, and with more constitutional disturbance than ozaena.

TREATMENT. – Aconitum. – If the complaint is ushered in with shivering, followed by quick and full pulse, inflamed eyes and nose, thirst, and scanty and high-coloured urine. Generally this medicine will be most suitable to commence with (unless the fever be for a low, asthenic type), and if followed by rest, and protection from cold for a few days, will often complete the cure.

Dulcamara. – Fever of low type brought on by wet, attended by gastric symptoms, white or shining coating on tongue, and constipation. Nux is indicated by the same symptoms.

Belladonna. – Pulse weak though quick, nasal discharge thin and scanty, throat sore.

Mercurius.- Thick, offensive mucous discharge from the nose, agglutination of the eyelids, enlargement of the glands of the neck, sore throat, difficulty of swallowing, slavering, diarrhoea. In some cases it is well to alternate it with Belladonna

Arsenicum. – Cold, from drinking cold water while the animal was overheated; great weakness; difficult breathing; swelled legs; loss of appetite, and excessive purging; symptoms as for Aconite all aggravated.

Bryonia.- Short breathing, attended with pain; violent fits of coughing, the animal appearing unwilling to move.

Sulphur.- When improvement takes place, continue the medicine that has brought it about, but at greater intervals; and afterwards, to prevent a return of the symptoms, give Sulph. twice daily for a few days.

ADMINISTRATION. – Whatever remedy is selected, it should be given three or four times a day, till the symptoms are mitigated : afterwards, once or twice a day, and gradually relinquished entirely.

ACCESSORY TREATMENT.- Fresh air without draughts; extra warmth; abundance of clean straw in the stable, dirty straw removed; friction of the horse’s skin morning and night with the hand or a flannel; sponging nose and eyes with tepid water several times a day; bran mashes, gruel, plenty of water with the chill off. All animals are best indoors for a few days.

PREVENTIVE TREATMENT.- The exciting cause should be removed. Whenever an animal has been exposed to any of the circumstances which occasion this compliant, especially if the early indications of cold be present, the prompt administrations of Camphor (Rubini’s tincture) will often render further treatment unnecessary, by terminating the cold in the first stage. This remedy should be given about every twenty or thirty minutes, till three of four doses have been given. Camphor is suited to the chilly stage of a cold, but not to the inflammatory. As sheep are particularly liable to cold in the autumn, they should not be neglected in wet weather, as they too frequently are, but should be led to a dry, sheltered place for the night.

Colic – Gripes – Fret

Colic – a spasmodic contraction of some parts of the intestinal canal – is an affection to which all domestic animals, but especially horses and cows, are subject. The disease is not common in sheep, but lambs overfed with milk, or with relishing herbs, or pastured in rank or acrid grass, are liable to it. So also are puppies when the milk of the mother is disordered by improper feeding, or exposure to cold and wet. If neglected it may cause inflammatory disease of the digestive organs. It resembles inflammation of the bowels, but differs from it in that the attack is sudden, the pain is intermittent and relieved by friction and movement, and is not attended by debility till near the end of the disorder.

CAUSES. – Errors in diet are the most common causes, such as arise from sudden changes from grass to dry food, or from dry food to grass; eating grass covered with hoar-frost, or grass that has fermented after being mown; musty corn; too large quantities of green food; food given too soon after exertion, or given in too large quantities to greedy animals; drinking large quantities of cold water when the animal is hot and perspiring; sudden chills; inflammation; worms; drastic purgatives. Some cases of Colic arise from causes which it is difficult to ascertain.

SYMPTOMS.- Acute abdominal pain with periods of relieve between the paroxysms. The animal, which a few minutes previously appeared, to be in good health, refuse to eat, looks to its sides, paws the found, kicks against the body with the hind feet, lies down, rises again, and continues these movements till unable longer to keep upon its feet. Often the animal falls down so violently, that it seems as though the four legs were suddenly struck away from under it, or he squats down like a dog upon its hind quarters, rolls over, lies upon his back for a time with the legs stretched upwards, and generally acts as it frantic.

If recovery takes place, the symptoms are gradually mitigated, and then entirely disappear. In the horse one of the earliest signs of improvement is staling. On the other hand, if the disorder is not subdued, the eye becomes wild and haggard, the respiration short and hurried, the sweat cold and clammy, the pulse insensible, the animal dashes his head about, the pains get worse and become more frequent, the bowels become inflamed, and if the pains under these circumstances, suddenly disappear, the inflammation terminates in gangrene (mortification), and the animal dies.

TREATMENT.- Aconitum. When caused by a chill or by drinking cold water when heated, and attended by extreme restlessness, fever, distention and rumbling in the abdomen, frequent and ineffectual efforts to urinate and defecate. A dose as soon as the attach sets in, and repeated every fifteen minutes, for several times. The prompt use of this medicine will be sufficient to effect a cure in the great majority of cases of genuine Colic.

Arsenicum.- If the animal is no better after four doses of Aconite, and there are severe purging, extreme prostration, and other violent symptoms, give this medicine every twenty minutes; or in turns with Aconite at the same intervals. These two medicines will cure most cases of Colic.

Nux Vomica.- Colic, caused by errors in diet, with constipation, discharges of small balls of brownish dung, covered with mucus; attempts to stale followed by the discharge of only a few drops of urine, or none at all; the sufferings not being marked by extreme violence, as indicated under Arsenicum A dose every twenty or thirty minutes until better.

Colocynthis is also an excellent remedy when Colic is caused by eating green food, and is attended with distention, expulsion of wind, and watery faeces, and very severe pain.

Cocculus is the best remedy for most cases of Flatulent Colic, which cannot be attributed to eating food or overloading the stomach. A dose every fifteen minutes.

Ammonium Causticum.- Windy Colic; Mr. Moore says he has been uniformly successful with this remedy in every case, the attack being invariably over in a few minutes after the first or second dose had been administered.

ACCESSORY MEANS.- In most cases of Colic, the cure is hastened by giving injections of tepid soap and water, and renewing them as often as the last injection is expelled again from the bowels. This is preferable to back raking. Cloths wrung out of warm water should be applied to the abdomen in severe cases.

Edward Harris Ruddock
Ruddock, E. H. (Edward Harris), 1822-1875. M.D.
LICENTIATE OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS; MEMBER OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS; LICENTIATE IN MIDWIFERY, LONDON AND EDINBURGH, ETC. PHYSICIAN TO THE READING AND BERKSHIRE HOMOEOPATHIC DISPENSARY.

Author of "The Stepping Stone to Homeopathy and Health,"
"Manual of Homoeopathic Treatment". Editor of "The Homoeopathic World."