Honeysuckle for Separation Anxiety

Honeysuckle (Lonicera caprifolium) is a very important essence for our loyal canine friends.  It can help dogs that have lost a friend, companion, or owner, aiding their emotional recovery so that they can move on and a regain balanced life.  This flower essence will help your dog to properly handle the times you need to leave him (or her) behind.  When we leave our dogs they can be unsure of our return, leaving them to feel stressed.  To the dog, this crates the same emotional pain as though their owner had died.    Honeysuckle blends well with Star of Bethlehem and Gorse and, in addition to training and behavior programs, can help them to become more emotionally independent.

Signs that may suggest the use of Honeysuckle

Problems Adapting

Change of Owner

Problems settling into a new routine

Homesickness

Melancholy

New Beginnings

Separation from owner or animal companions

Death of owner or animal companion

The Wild Rose Cat

Rosa canina - Wild Rose felines exhibit a behavior of "learned helplessness" which is similar to the way humans feel when they have become weary of struggling against life's challenges.  Cats that have been exposed to on-going stress for prolonged periods can bin to shut down emotionally - sometimes losing the will to survive and become resigned to whatever happens.  Often this state is apparent in cats that have been abused for a long time, have fallen gravely ill or are slowly dying without any attention or proper care.
Wild Rose is an important essence for such cats as it kindles an interest in life and surviving.  A frequent use of this particular flower essence is in helping rescue cats who have experienced difficult times, convalescing cats and those of advanced years.  This essence blends well with Oak, Olive, Gentian and Gorse to help restore vitality to a depleted system.

To give you an idea of the powerful potential of Wild Rose, veterinary associates of the Society for Animal Flower Essence Research have found that it is immensely effective in helping injured wild animals to survive the stress of anesthetic and operations.  Often these animals die during treatment, or soon after, not because of the injuries suffered, but from the stress of being transported, placed in an environment they have never experienced and handled over and over by humans.

Indications for the use of Wild Rose

Unresolved negative experiences

Severe Injury

Weakness of Will

Refusal of Food

No desire to be active

Indifference

Weak Immune System

After a Stillbirth

The Hornbeam Horse

Does your horse seem tired to you, or weak and unable to concentrate?  Hornbeam (carpinus betulus) may be the Flower Essence needed to help restore its motivation and enthusiasm.

Horses that require Hornbeam remain curious about new things but remain tired and may appear completely worn out when the first signs of illness occur and take a long time to recover.  They tend to have a tendency towards connective tissue problems mental exhaustion. Hornbeam should be used as a follow up treatment for illnesses and for the horse who is overburdened by work, training or competition.  Hornbeam, the flower of vigor, promotes vitality and hosrses receiving its benefits show renewed motivation and zest for life.

Symptoms where Hornbeam may be indicated:

Problems in old age

Strain

Apathy

Arthritis

Lack of energy

Exhaustion

Weak immune system

Weakness

Lethargy

Tiredness

Boredom if not working to full capacity

After a long illness or overexertion

Flower Essences - Length of Treatment Guidelines

    Generally speaking, Bach Flower Essence therapy should be continued for as long as your pet is showing symptoms that require treatment.  Although some long-standing challenges may require patience until desired change is noticed, the Flower Essences tend to work quickly with notable effectiveness within hours or days.  Therefore, how long you administer a particular essence may vary.  Pet guardians often continue with a chosen essence for two weeks then assess the situation and, if no change is evident, they will consult and determine which essence to administer next.  I do recommend having an outside person (preferably trained or experienced with Flower Essence use) observe the situation.  Often are not as objective as necessary when observing and reporting our findings regarding our own pets.  

    Three therapy timelines have been established:

     

     *  ACUTE THERAPY - This is recommended for critical and sudden displays of disturbed behavior or psychological problems, to be given for an initial period from one day up to two weeks, often with only 1 - 3 essences used

     *  LONG TERM THERAPY - The emphasis is on treating disturbances that have already been in place for a long time.  The Flower Essences are given over a period of several months or even a year.  Usually several flowers are blended and that combination should be reviewed and altered after two to four weeks to determine whether a change is necessary.  

     *  PERMANENT THERAPY  - This approach is applied when a pet shows the tendency to revert to old behavior patterns after taking the chosen essence(s).

Elm flower essence for Dogs

Ulmus procera - Elm 

Dogs can become overwhelmed and mentally taxed by too many impressions happening at once. Those that live in chaotic environments such as big cities or rescue facilities can become confused and unhappy due to sensory overload.  Though, as their guardians we must do our best to reduce the amount of stress a dog has to handle, Elm can help dogs by relaxing their minds in the midst of all the potentially troubling input.

Administering Elm over a period of time, it is also a helpful aid when socializing puppies when they are introduced for the first time to things they will have to deal with in life such as busy streets, rooms filled with people, crowded kennel or daycare situations and group training classes. As a training aid, Elm blends well with Walnut, a remedy that supports confidence and courage.

Dosage:
4 drops, 4 times daily

* PLEASE REMEMBER, do not administer flower essences directly from the glass dropper *

Agrimony for Cats

Agrimonia eupatoria - Agrimony can help any cat suffering from outside stressful influences and combines well with two particular flower remedies; Impatiens and Walnut.
The combination of these three flower essences can be very helpful to ease the stress of temporary situations like confinement while traveling or transporting, kenneling, quarantine or when being introduced to a new home.

Alone, Agrimony helps our feline companions handle the sometimes problematic human world.  Cats are very affected if they live in an environment of perpetual conflict filled with shouting, arguing and upheaval.  If unable to distance themselves physically, they will try to keep out of the way while waiting for calm to return.  When this cycle repeats, cats will develop chronic stress, which may present itself in nervousness, confusion and even depression.

I am aware of cases where the use of Agrimony has lessened chronic licking and biting from flea reactions, settled the endlessly pacing animal, improved the recovery time of slow healing wounds and reduced noise sensitivity.

Dosage:

4 drops, 4 times daily

RESCUE REMEDY

    

Possibly the most well known Bach Flower Remedy is the Five Flower/Rescue Remedy.  This effective combination is intended for all emergency situations such as shock following accident or injury, bee stings, tic bites, collapse, severe fright and other instances of acute fear such as noise sensitivity.  It is a blend of Star of Bethlehem, Rock Rose, Cherry Plum and Impatiens, all capable in their unique ways of significantly reducing the psychological distress of traumatic or emergency incident.  Readily available in health and nutritional markets as well as many grocery stores, Rescue Remedy is an effective "go to" blend and I recommend keeping a bottle handy at all times - carry it with you, toss a bottle in your back pack or saddle bag, should the need arise,

you will be grateful that you did.

    Dosage recommendations:

Dogs and Cats - in acute or extreme instances -  

 4 drops four times an hour until the situation has improved -

In other circumstances, a total of 16 drops per day which may be divided evenly into 2 or 4 administrations of 4-8 drops

Horses 

Foals and Ponies - 6-8 drops four times daily

Large horses - 8-10 drops four times daily

In acute or extreme instances, administer 8 drops four times an hour 

until the situation has improved