Interested in Chinese herbal veterinary medicine? Read on to get an overview of how Chinese herbal formulas can be used to treat various diseases in animals.
Chinese herbal medicine is one amongst the five branches of the most ancient organized system of medicine known as traditional Chinese medicine. Herbal veterinary medicine is yet another branch of herbal medicine in general. This kind of treatment works best with animals that will not be able to tolerate the other means of Chinese treatment such as acupuncture.
Understanding Chinese herbal veterinary treatment
Herbal veterinary medicine involves prescribing and administrating herbal remedies to animals for various problems such as uncontrolled spastic aggression. Chinese herbs are used in combination to develop a formula suited to treat a particular disease of the animal. They can be given in powder or pill form with the animal’s food. In other cases they may also be taken in the form of suppositories.
All types of herbs from hot, warm, neutral, cool and cold are used in Chinese herbal veterinary medicine. This classification of herbs is but naturally aimed at the effects that they have on the body. For example if an animal is suffering from high fever then a cool or cold herb will be used to provide it with treatment.
Furthermore the herbs are classified according to five flavors which are salty, bitter, sour, sweet and pungent. The different flavors have varying effects on the body. When animals are given sweet tasting herbs it will help to restore the balance of energy in the body while providing it with strength. On the other hand the use of pungent herbs can help to tonify Qi and blood in the body of animals. The herbs are also selected according to their area of operation which is known as the meridian.
Different parts of the same plant can have different medicinal characteristics and the Chinese make use of all the parts of a plant depending on the particular medical need. When it comes to herbal veterinary formulas we find there to be a huge collection of classic formulas making use of 15 to 20 different herbs. Such formulas have existed in China since many centuries.
In recent years many of these classic formulas have been modified for the purpose of treating new diseases that were unknown during that time in a particular species. Similarly a herbal formula can be altered depending on the species of animal it is going to be used for.
The effectiveness of herbal veterinary remedies
There are various diseases that can be treated in animals using Chinese herbal veterinary medicines. Some of the most commonly treated diseases using herbal remedies in animals are rheumatism, epilepsy, allergic rhinitis and a lot more. Animals suffering from type 2 diabetes have also benefited from the use of Chinese herbal medicine.
The selection of herbs varies according to the disease that needs to be treated and the internal workings of the animal’s body. It is important to take the internal workings of the body into consideration when selecting a Chinese herbal veterinary remedy for a specific animal because each species responds differently to different herbs.
