How to give Homeopathic Medicines to Dogs, Cats and Horses

General guidance

1. Homeopathic medicines are very delicate, therefore avoid touching the medicine with your hand.
2. Do not return accidentally handled medicine to the bottle. Dispense just the required dose from the bottle at each dosage time. Keep the container tightly sealed at all times, except when actually dispensing. Do not open two containers of medicine at once.
3. Store medicines away from sunlight, in a cool dark place and keep away from strong-smelling substances, especially camphor, embrocations, perfume etc. Do not refrigerate or freeze. If correctly stored, homeopathic medicines can survive for very long periods, so do not discard unused supplies; they could be useful to your animal (or for yourself) in the future. Those stored in glass bottles survive better.
4. Pillules may conveniently be dispensed into the bottle cap, prior to dosing. It is not necessary to give an exact number of pillules. If the patient allows, the pills may then be tossed from the cap directly into the mouth (avoiding contamination of the cap with saliva etc), to avoid handling of the pillules altogether.
5. Drops may be given in water or directly onto the tongue. One to three drops is a usual dose. Drops should be aqueous, rather than alcoholic.
6. Powders can be poured directly into the mouth from the paper.
7. Pillules, powders or tablets may be dissolved in a little boiled, cooled water in a syringe and this provides a means of liquid dosing. This can work very well for cats, for whom a drop or two of liquid can be placed onto the front of the nose/upper lip of onto a front paw, for the cat to lick the dose promptly.
8. Injections are available and, for farm use, in-water medication is commonly used.
9. Lotions are for external use only. These should usually be diluted prior to use (please check if not given clear instructions).
10. For oral medicines, ensure that the dose is either swallowed or retained in the mouth for 30 seconds. Thereafter it may be ejected without diminishing the effect.
11. When more than one medicine has been prescribed, please do not give them at the same time. If possible, allow a five-minute interval between different prescriptions. If possible, do not give doses within 15 minutes of food. For farm species and horses this is, of course, not possible, but try to avoid contact with 'compound' feeds for at least five minutes. Medicines can be given to horses in a very little bland food (e.g. grated organic carrot or apple or a very small piece of bread).
12. In-water medication can be very useful for farm animals or groups of animals. In the case of cage birds and other small pets pillules may be added to the drinking water, freshly prepared each day. Be careful to avoid blockage of the nozzle.
13. Avoid giving strong-smelling sweets or treats, e.g. peppermints, to animals while they are on medication.
14. Adhere carefully to the prescribed dosage regimen and, if questions arise, please do not hesitate to raise them with the prescriber. If in doubt at any time, it does no harm to stop the homeopathic prescription, pending further advice.