In my last blog post, I explained how I was going to start treating Daisy with homeopathic fragaria and calc renalis to support good dental health.
So now I’d like to remind everyone how homepathic remedies are made.
This diagram outlines the process, but doesn’t fully explain how the remedies are made. (I was sent this diagram a long time ago and I’m not sure of the original source for it).
Step 1: Make a mother tincture
The first step is to create a mother tincture out of the plant source. The plant material is cut up and crushed and left to soak in an alcohol and water solution in a dark place for some time. The period of soaking is long enough to draw the properties of the plant into solution. When the maker of the remedy understands that the mixture is ready, they will strain off any residual plant material. This is the mother tincture.
Step 2: Potentization
One drop of the mother tincture is put into a vial and then nine drops of a solution of alcohol and water and shaken vigorously. This results in a 1X potency. With one drop of the 1X potency and nine drops of the diluting solution and another good shake and you have 2X potency.
For the potency of 1C, this process is done 100 times. (C is the Roman numeral for 100).
In most cases, homeopathics start with a 6C potency. Other common potencies are 12C, 30C and 200C. I’m most familiar with the 30C potency which is often the starting point (it’s what I’ll be using). However, when there’s an acute condition that requires a bit more energy, I use 200C.
It’s also important to understand how your homeopathic remedy is made. My homeopathic vet prefers that the remedies are made by hand by an experienced homeopathic pharmacist. Major commercial brands like Weleda, on the other hand, use a manufacturing process for potentizing.
Homeopathy is a really interesting discipline and just one of the complementary therapies available to help your dog attain and maintain optimal health.