Separation Anxiety (S.A.), in dogs is a behavioural disorder characterized by a pet's exaggerated fear over separation from its owners. All puppies show some signs of S.A., a normal developmental behaviour. It becomes worrying when the signs of S.A. remain after the "teenage" period of puppies.
Homeopathy can contribute to the treatment of this disorder because it approaches the organism in an holistic way, taking into consideration its idiosyncrasy. Idiosyncrasy is here defined as the sum of the specific characteristics of an animal, at the physical, mental and psychological level, when it is in a state of health/and or illness. It is understandable that abnormal behaviour is nothing other than an imbalance of the homeostasis in an organism, which means an unhealthy situation manifesting itself through psychological and mental symptoms.
The application of homeopathic laws during the compilation of a case history allows us to achieve a deeper understanding of the dog, taking into consideration all its special characteristics. We select two homoeopathic methods of approaching animals:
A) The specific characteristics are recorded, considering the factors that influence the idiosyncracies of the dog, such as breed, parents, miasmatic predisposition, environment and life conditions from birth to present time, and the influence of the owner. The idiosyncratic case history also includes the homeopathic questionnaire, that includes general data (emphasizing mental and psychological characteristics), and local data (mainly concerning the modalities of physical symptoms).
B) The symptoms manifested by special modalities are recorded and analyzed only according to the homoeopathic repertory. For S.A. we find rubrics in every system; for example: anxiety when alone, fear of being alone, destructiveness, forsaken feeling, aggravated while alone, irritability when alone, grief, anxiety, diarrhea when alone, palpitations when alone, chorea from fright, etc.
We have observed that homoeopathic remedies such as Phosphorus, Lachesis, Phosphoric Acid, Lycopodium, Pulsatilla, Arsenicum, Argentum Nitricum, and Kali carbonicum are often indicated in cases of Separation Anxiety.
The choice of an effective remedy depends on the information about the idiosyncratic characteristics of each dog. With the help of the homeopathic case history, we can analyse the dogs' behaviour, thus allowing us to understand their particular idiosyncrasy, so we can prescribe the appropriate Simillimum remedy.