The Bach Flower Remedies

For centuries the healing properties of plants have been used in various ways, as in herbal medicine or aromatherapy, for physical and emotional problems in both humans and animals.  With the introduction of new and “scientifically” approved pharmaceutical medicine, plant based remedies and folklore took a back seat ….. ….. for a little while.

In 1912 Edward Bach fulfilled a childhood ambition and qualified as a medical doctor, graduating from University College Hospital, Cambridge.  His early career was involved with immunology and the development of a new group of vaccines which are still in use today.

Despite the success of these vaccines Dr Bach was convinced that treating just the disease was not enough and after sitting with hundreds of patients and discussing their illnesses and how they were feeling he realised that the success of them returning to good health depended very much on how they the felt emotionally. 

So convinced was he that he could find a harmless yet effective form of treating the emotional state that in 1930 he packed his bags and left his very lucrative and successful career in London behind.

In the following six years he discovered and completed a system of 38 individual remedies that we now know to be The Bach Flower Remedies, each one focusing on a specific state of mind, personality trait or mood.

The Remedies & Animals

Anyone who lives or works with animals knows only too well that they, of course, have emotions too and it was found that the remedies work really well with animals who are suffering from emotional/behavioural problems. The most commonly used remedy for animals is Rescue Remedy which is a combination of five individual remedies which is specifically designed to be used in emergency or stressful situations i.e an accident.   It is now available in a spray which makes it so easy to give, just spray directly onto the animals gums.

I have seen it used at shows quite a lot but in most cases a specific treatment bottle,  made up for that individual animal,  would be more appropriate. It is intended to be on hand, readily available should the need arise.  I tend not to go anywhere these days without mine in a pocket.

When using the remedies with animals we have to look at the situation from their point of view as they can find it difficult to sometimes express their negative emotions.  Animals are often unfairly labelled as difficult, stubborn, aggressive or stupid when in actual fact they could be frightened, shy or timid, lonely, depressed or anxious.  I have never known a dog act out of spite or to “get it’s own back” ! ……… seriously have you??  Like us they can be deeply affected by past ill treatment or bad experiences and sometimes these bad experiences are not easily forgotten.  A bad experience that happened months, even years before can still affect an animal’s present emotional state.  That is why the Bach Remedies work so well as they address the root cause of the problem hence the need for careful consideration as to why the animal is behaving in such a way that is causing itself or its owner distress or problems. 

The remedies do not treat physical conditions and should be regarded as a complementary form of medicine rather than an alternative.   They are given by drops usually onto food or a treat.   The Bach remedies are not chemicals or drugs and are completely safe to use alongside other forms of treatment and can be used on any animal. They usually work in a very gentle, subtle way and as mentioned before not masking the problem but alleviating it.  Depending on the problem results can be seen within hours, others may take days, weeks or even months for long standing issues.

For example they can help with:

§        Fear           

§        Over enthusiasm

§        Possessiveness

§        Grief

§        Shyness/timidity

§        Anxiety

§        Apathy/resignation ……………… to name but a few.

Unfortunately they are a form of complementary therapy that is often last on the list ………. when in a lot of cases they should be one of the first. If you would like a consultation for your animal or would like contact details for a practitioner in your area please contact colleen.stead@virgin.net

Many thanks to Colleen Stead for this helpful article.

                                         Jenny Thomson: Fully Qualified Instructor With The British Institute of Professional Dog Trainers

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