by Dr. Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman and Dr. Robert Ullman
Horses, Cows, Chickens, and More
In a previous post we discussed the characteristics of those needing homeopathic medicines made from animals then elaborated on Lac caninum (dog’s milk) and Lyssin (rabies). We promised to continue our three-part series this month focusing on barnyard animals what we will very loosely call “barnyard medicine.” Homeopathic medicines made from the horse include Lac equinum (mare’s milk), to which we will devote the majority of this article, Castor equi (the rudimentary thumbnail of the horse), Hippomanes (colt meconium), and Pilus equinus (horse hair). Other medicines made from farm animals include Lac caprinum (goat’s milk), Fel tauri (ox gall), Lac vaccinum (cow’s milk), Lac defloratum (skimmed cow’s milk), Ovi gallinae pellicula (membrane of eggshell), Lac ovis (sheep’s milk), and various obscure pig-derived medicines including Lac suilinum (house pig’s milk), and Hepar suis (pig’s liver). Rats can be prolific in agricultural environments. Two rat medicines have been proven recently: Rattus rattus (Bombay street rat) and Sourcis sanguis (Norwegian pet rat). Another widely known and marketed homeopathic animal medicine is Oscillococcinum, found in studies to be quite effective for influenza, which is made from duck liver and heart.
Lac equinum, lac caprinum, Rattus rattus have all been proved for the first time during the past several years. Oscillococcinum has proved effective in the initial stages of influenza. Lac defloratum and Hippomanes are well documented in the homeopathic materia medica. The main themes elicited in the Lac caprinum proving were shameless sexuality, nervous, frightened children clinging to their mothers, and individuals in high social position who hide sexual indiscretions and are subject to scandal and disgrace. In Rattus we find an indifference to the suffering of others, lack of sexual inhibition, and a profound feeling of dirtiness or disgust. Lac defloratum is best known for debilitating headaches, complications of pregnancy, intolerance of or aversion to milk, and a strong feeling of being forsaken and rejected by the community. Those needing Hippomanes may have a sensation of icy coldness in the stomach, of the wrist being sprained, and a tendency towards an isolative despondency or brooding.
Lac Equinum Themes
The medicine, out of the list above, with we have had the most clinical success is Lac equinum. The proving conducted by Nancy Herrick, P.A. is discussed in depth in her book Animal Mind, Human Voices. Jessica Jackson, L.Ac. gave a wonderful presentation on her several cases of this medicine at the 1999 conference of the National Center for Homeopathy (NCH) for which an audiotape is available. We have prescribed Lac equinum with considerable benefit for several adults and one child. One of the main keys for us to prescribing this medicine, though it need not necessarily be present, is a great interest, fondness, and often, passion for horses. This was confirmed in Ms. Jackson’s NCH presentation. A second theme is a feeling of having one’s wild spirit or nature beaten out- of being tamed into submission. This was expressed in the proving as the frustration resulting from a large, wild animal having been subjugated, domesticated, selectively bred, and, too often, mistreated by humans. Think for a moment of the battles in which horses were sacrificed, of rodeos and racetracks, slaughter houses, and overburdened pack horses. The term “breaking“, used commonly among horse trainers, as Ms. Herrick points out, is very telling. Our patients needing Lac equinum have recounted dreams of galloping through the plains feeling wonderfully alive and free. Invariably when we have asked them to describe what it is they love about horses, they mention the animal’s free spirit. Of course they may also mention other qualities such as beauty, grandeur, and specific traits.
Themes drawn from Ms. Herrick’s provings were apathy and ennui (in fact she concluded that horses in general were extremely unhappy and dissatsified), difficult and frustrating encounters, a tendency towards confrontation, mistakes and errors (such as reversing letters which we saw in one of our cases), impatience, irritability, and violence. She concludes that this Lac equinum is likely to belong to the tubercular miasm because of the discontentment, restlessness, constriction, and desire to break free as well as the strong desire for bacon in the proving subjects (also highly characteristic of Tuberculinum and other tubercular remedies such as Calcarea phosphorica). This makes sense to us.
One last element emphasized in Ms. Jackson’s cases was a tendency to give generously of oneself, sometimes to excess. We have noticed this characteristic in a couple of our cases as well.
Lac Equinum Case
We began to treat Ginny, age ten, six months ago. Normally we do not present cases unless they have a minimum of one year’s treatment but we are making an exception here because the improvement has been clear and dramatic from the beginning. A robust infant, Ginny began to gag frequently beginning at nine months of age. She talked easily, seemed normal in every way, and show signs of precocity, similar to her older brother who was in a gifted program. The first grade teacher alerted Ginny’s parents of his difficulty with handwriting. The disparity between her IQ (at the level of a twelfth grader) and her hand motor coordination ( that of a five year old) was marked. By the time Ginny reached second grade, she remarked at times about being stupid due to her challenge with handwriting. Over time Ginny lost interest in academics entirely [remember the apathy and ennui in the Lac equinum proving].
This child demonstrated an equestrian interest at two years of age. Begging to go on pony rides, at seven Ginny’s parents set her up with a riding instructor which made her “the happiest kid in the world.” An animal lover, riding was Ginny’s passion of passions. Extremely gentle with all animals, she dreamed of running an animal rescue center. Ginny loved nothing more than to show her horse.
One teachers recommended testing for learning disabilities. Another noted the youngster’s disproportionate test anxiety and wondered about ADHD. During this period significant separation anxiety emerged following by loss of stool. It seemed that Ginny’s performance anxiety was manifesting in somatic complaints and more global worrying.
Her temperament seemed to depend on her riding. When the lessons went well, so were Ginny’s moods. If she felt her trainer had misunderstood or mistreated her horse, her reading and spelling problems escalated. Occasional episodes of rage occurred, but they blew over in a matter of minutes and were generally a result of being teased by her older brother. In general Ginny was kind and enjoyed helping disabled children. During infancy, Ginny eczema had been treated with steroidal cream. Unfortunately Ginny had no recollection of any dreams.
We prescribed Lac equinum for Ginny based on her passion for horses, disinterest in school work, problems with writing, and the tendency to become frustrated when her efforts were thwarted.
Six weeks later her parents reported a dramatic diminishing of anxiety, a willingness to take more risks, and a lack of concern about being away from her parents. Ginny went on her first two-night overnight without any problems. She was much more easy going overall, was no longer soiling her pants, and her teacher remarked that the dark circles under her eyes were gone. Ginny’s response to the Lac equinum was quite positive.
We next spoke with Ginny’s mom by phone two months later, at which time she was doing “great”. The parents reported “major changes in every aspect.”In fact her father had commented continually, “I just can’t believe the change in her!”They could attribute the change only to the homeopathy since nothing else had changed. Ginny had broken her arm while tying up her horse but the fracture healed quickly and the cast was removed after two weeks. Since that time her allergies had flared up in the form of morning sneezing (an old symptom) and the dark circles under her eyes had returned. Because school was about to start and Ginny’s mom was concerned about her allergies, we repeated the Lac equinum 1M, however it would have likely been just fine to have waited and not prescribed at this point.
Our most recent phone consultation for Ginny was last week at which time she continued to do very well. In fact her mother had considered postponing the appointment for a couple of months. The only reason she didn’t was that she wanted our advice about dealing with a new teacher. Ginny’s reading had improved, she was markedly more mature, and she handled a potentially difficult situation with a supervising adult remarkably well. We prescribed Arnica for a wrist sprain due to a minor fall from her horse. No repetition of the Lac equinum was needed.
Ginny’s case is in progress. We have only treated her for six months but the medicine has been clearly effective and has taught us a great deal about Lac equinum, as have our other two or three cases who have benefitted significantly from it.
More Learning Necessary for These New Medicines
A single proving of a new homeopathic medicine and a few cured cases of a handful of homeopaths is but a start. We have only scratched the surface of using homeopathic animal medicines. The initial results, as with Ginny, are very promising. We are excited about learning about and using many more of these medicines to help those who are suffering. In the process, we are also able to gain more insight into and respect for our fellow animals from which these medicines are made.
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