Chins and Herbs

I bought a magazine in a pet store the other day - the Critters USA 2002 Manual. There is an article on herbal remedies and I was wondering if anyone knows anything about these and how they work with pets? Whether or not they should be used?

Here are the ones listed:

• Arnica - used for reducing pain and healing injuries.
  
• Phosphorus - stops hemorrhage caused by injury.
  
• Hepar Sulphurous - treats infection and stops its spread.
  
• Ignatia - treats anxiety and fear.
  
• Red Raspberry Leaves and Slippery Elm - treats diarrhea.
  
• Nettle Tea, Liquid Chlorophyll - enhances dental health.
  
• Calendula Ointment and Witch Hazel - Treats cuts.
  
• Dandelion Leaves and Roots - Treats liver and kidneys, cleans the body.
  
• Plantain - (leaves or tea) Treats indigestion and is recommended for chins and rabbits.
  
• Echinacea - treats colds and lung disorders.

Can anyone expand on or add to this list?

Thanks.

[Dena]

I have this magazine also but I haven't read it yet (it has been sitting around for months along with my 3 Bird Talk Mags I haven't gotten to yet either).

I have heard dandelion greens are good for many different types of animals and are recommended for lizards. It would be great to know if these things work if not a cure than for preventative uses.

Are you supposed to give the chins these herbs to eat? Or like make a tea out of them? Or put them on the wound? (Does the magazine give instructions on how the chins should get these herbs into their system?) I am an herbalist, and from the way these herbs are supposed to help the animals, it seems as though some should be placed on the wound directly and some should be taken internally. Does the magazine give any advice?

[Sassy]

Your a herbalist? Ya never told me. LOL

Yup. If you guys want, and can research how these herbs are used on humans... at least that way we can find out if they are edible or not. (Also, I can tell you what, if any, side effects will be caused by their usage.) I will let you all know sometime tonight or tomorrow.

[Christi]

I have a wonderful friend that I am trying to drag over to join us that is very knowledgeable in herbal remedies... in the meantime she has given me permission to post her comments:

"Thousands of years before our "western" medicine was discovered/created, ancient cultures used herbs and plants to make powerful and healing potions. Some of the modern medicine we use today are actually synthetic versions of natural remedies. Salicylic acid that we use as a painkiller (Aspirin etc) originates from the leaves of willow trees, for instance. St. John's wort is a natural antidepressive with the same basic functions as Prozac. (Even most heavy narcotic drugs are "derivations" of plants... and marijuana is a herb too...) Hence, while many of these natural drugs can be as potent as prescribed drugs, they could also cause side effects and I wouldn't recommend experimenting with them in acute situations when a professional treatment is essential.

With good guidance from experienced people (such as - probably - the authors of the magazine Cindi quoted) I don't think it's risky to try some mild herbs on our beloved chinnies, though.

For human purposes Arnica cream is good for bruises. Just dab some on the skin. Raspberry, I actually use the berries (yum! ) when I feel a cold coming up (together with echinacea, vitamin C and Zink), witch hazel is antibacterial (good on pimples ), dandelion, yes, I sprinkle the dry leaves directly on the chinnies pellets or make tea on the roots.

Chamomille is also a good, calming herb that chinnies just love. Peppermint is an appetite stimulator. Vitakraft sells a box of chin goodies called "Nature kreuter" or something, a very nice mix of healing and stimulating herbs that can be sprinkled in the food dish once in a blue moon.

LINKS:
http://www.chemheritage.org/Educatio.../asp/asp28.htm
http://detnews.com/2001/health/0105/18/h05-224606.htm
http://www.healthcentral.com/peoples...erblibrary.cfm
http://www.geocities.com/rusticroots/herbs/

To find out if a plant or herb could be toxic, the second best thing from having a herb encyclopedia is to search for side effects with key words like "toxic", "warning" etc and the plants name on a search engine as Google for instance. Google is great, by the way. The far best search engine I've ever used."

THANKS ANNYCA!!!

Well righ ton then! Less work that I have to do. Thanks Christi!

[Rocheal]

Destiny (my chinchilla...obviously) constantly has food in her cage...sometimes when it gets low, i fill it up...i read somewhere that chinchillas eat around about a tablespoon of food everyday...is this true? if it is, am i wrong by constantly leaving food in her cage? does she know if she eats too much? should i only give her a certain amount in the morning once a day?

[Jade]

Rocheal,

I was originally told that they won't overeat, then my vet told me that I should only give about 1/3 of a cup per day. There are a lot of contradictions. What I would watch is the state of her poos, the amount of hay she eats, and her weight gain. If the weight gain isn't excessive and she's getting enough hay, I wouldn't worry about it. Your own good judgement combined with knowing others' experiences is often your best bet!

[Rocheal]

shes gained weight, but im basing that on because shes growing...shes not like fat or anything...yeah, that makes sense...should they have alot of hay???

[Becki]

It's great, colloidial silver is a natural antibiotic, and all around good for you (we used to get it in our water, but not anymore with all the proccessing and such). I've used it for eye infections, rashes, on cuts and sores, and I've heard of many other uses that I can't think of off the top of my head. I've used it with great success on myself and other family members as well as pets.
For my chins, colloidial silver has cleared up eye infections in as little as 1 use, and when the chins were having some soft poo problems I put a few drop into everyones water and it cleared right up.


I also want to say that some find it very controversial, so if you use this you should, as with any home remedy I suppose, reasearch first. I whole heartedly reccomend it, and my vet completly approved of the silver treatments, but some will differ in opinion.

[Rocheal]

who was that directed to?? me??

[Jade]

Rocheal, as a basic rule I keep hay available at all times. A lot of it gets pulled out of the cubes but about 3/4 of it gets eaten. My vet told me to keep it 'free choice' for them and it seems to work well. You might want to check out the Nutrition page on Christi's site!

[Becki]

My post was just a basic home remedy (I know, the subject is herbal remedies..) that I've found very useful and thought I might share with everyone.

[Rocheal]

alrighty Jade, will do....lol, becki...it just threw me off when i read that, i didnt know what u meant cuz i didnt think it was directed towards my question lol, sorry,my fault.....but once i read over it now. yeah that is some usefull info