Why do animals respond to homeopathy?

[Amapola]

I personally don't see anything I'd recognise as the "Clever Hans" effect in sick animals. What I see is a lot of observer bias and a lot of coincidental recovery. These things apply just as much to conventional medicine as woo. It's just that you try to notice when they're happening and discount them.

Since the observer bias effect is all on the owners, I don't see why different colours and shapes of pill shouldn't have some influence.

Rolfe.

I think all this is absolutely true. In fact I would say "Homeopathy *does not* work on animals."

But there is one way that I think you can see the "Clever Hans" effect. Some vets use this stuff that is supposed to make animals calm if they smell it. (I only wish there were such a thing!) I've mostly seen this used on horses. Not mine, as I don't allow vets who do such things to touch any of my animals, but many of my friends believe in this stuff and take their horses to such vets. They even bring back tiny bottles of this magical fluid to use at home. Horses are such herd animals that if the owner is acting nervous or scared they will often become nervous, so the actual effect is on the owner! The owner believes it will calm the horse down and it does - but only because the owner is calmer.

Otherwise, yeah, what Rolfe said!

 

[Dogdoctor]

Everyone has covered this well but since I am a vet I will give you my perspective since you are probably wondering. People who believe in homeopathy have convinced themselves that it works and if they are reasonably smart they have rationalized some way to make the ridiculous and basically disproved philosophy seem better. Several things can happen with animals. Pets are often very responsive to their owners so if the owner acts a certain way the animal reacts to them. The owner thinks they are sick so they owner acts depressed the animal reacts to this. The owner thinks the animal was cured and the owner is happy and the animal reacts to this. Other than that it is mostly observer bias. While not homeopathy I will give you an example of observer bias that I saw with herbal stuff. I saw a cat for tumors, I removed some and the biopsy came back as a malignant type of tumor and it had spread every where so there was little hope for the cat. The owner wasn't satisfied and gave the cat some herbal stuff. The cat went into a coma and died. The owners interpretation is that the herbs helped the cat rest peacefully till it died. I have had one client who was doing all the latest natural remedies for fleas. I would see her evey year and every year it was some new and better natural treatment for fleas. Every year her cat had lots of fleas yet she was so convinced that it worked that she thought I should be telling my patients about these wonderful treatments. So people often point to animals as the proof of homeopathy but it is only because they haven't examined the issue closely enough and they lack the open mind necessary to do so. Just posting so you can quit wondering what I think . Everyone else has covered it pretty well so I don't have much to add other than some stories.

 

[Mojo]

Or you'll get the mojo and not the patient or something.

It can't be that because the patient themselves isn't supposed to touch it before it gets into their mouth.

 

[Ivor the Engineer]

So... you can touch it with your mouth, but not with your hand

...said the bishop to the actress.

 

[Baron Samedi]

...said the bishop to the actress.

Bad Ivor! Bad!

 

[JoeTheJuggler]

This was somewhat more effective than the conditioning used to stop coyotes from chasing roadrunners, which consisted largely of making them run off of cliffs whilst holding anvils and such.

Ooh, can we try that on homeopaths?

Apply directly to the homeopath's head!
Apply directly to the homeopath's head!
Apply directly to the homeopath's head!
Apply directly to the homeopath's head!

 

[Rolfe]

It can't be that because the patient themselves isn't supposed to touch it before it gets into their mouth.

There you go, that logic thing again. You really have to give that up or you'll never make any progress.

Rolfe.

 

[Slimething]

Ah, yes, another product in the offing! NatursOwn (R) All Natural Winsulated Homeopathic Pill Holder with Energizing Crystal Top. (A film canister that costs about fifty cents with a plastic lens glued on the inner lid should sell for about thirty bucks, I'd say.)

 

[arthwollipot]

Everyone has covered this well but since I am a vet I will give you my perspective since you are probably wondering.

I was. Thanks for the stories.

 

[Strife]

This is a very interesting thread. Since I'm a crazy cat cat person I get to hear people singing praise to homeopathy all the time. I'm glad to have more material to use. Something I seen a lot is that people give cats who are nervous at cat shows or tomcats who behave badly homeopathic treatment. I feel like I want to slam my head against the wall when no one understand the argument that if the owner is calmer, of course the cat is..