Friday, July 3, 2009

But my mom's groomer's sister's friend's brother's....

There are many natural and homeopathic remedies out there that are touted for every condition under the sun. I have a fair number of animals that come in for various problems where initial treatment with such therapies have failed. From the coonhound that has been dewormed with chewing tobacco to the dog with hip dysplasia that is on a strict emu oil regime, there is a lot of hogwash-in-a-bottle for sale to the right buyer.

Now, despite the lack of significant clinical evidence, I am not as quick to dismiss some of these remedies as others. I have a handful of such remedies that I occasionally will add to a treatment program because (a) I know they can't hurt anything, and (b) I have seen them help some animals. I'll recommend joint supplements to help arthritic dogs though there is significant debate in the literature on the usefulness of such practices. I have some cats with chronic urinary bladder issues that seem to benefit from cranberry supplements. I even have an herbal solution that I have used a few times on very large wounds to speed healing to great effect.

That said, I found the following video hilarious. When you read through some of the homeopathic remedies out there in an effort to find relief and treatment for a particularly frustrating case, you soon find ridiculous recipes, just like this:

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