Damca, a Viola dog

Damca, a one year old female Dalmatian dog, came for a homeopathic consultation in March 1999 for a chronic skin problem.

Medical History:  

When adopted at the age of two months, she had diarrhea as a result of intestinal worms.

At the age of three months, she suffered from a urinary tract infection accompanied by diarrhea.

At the age of five months, she suffered from festering wounds in different parts of the body: abdomen, chest and throat.

At the age of five and a half months, she had 'kennel cough': a contagious viral respiratory disease.

Damca was sterilized at the age of seven months, before ever being in heat.

At the age of eight months, she suffered from an acute gastritis with vomiting.

When she was one year old, she had another urinary tract infection caused by urinary oxalates crystals.

Two months later, her characteristic skin problems showed up as red and itchy spots on the neck, face, back, and feet.

She was first treated with antibiotics that did not help with the skin symptoms but brought on a digestive response with diarrhea.

She was then brought for a homeopathic treatment of her skin problems.  

Damca's characteristics 

She does not like traveling by car ever since she was brought home as a puppy and vomited throughout her first car ride. She salivates abundantly in the car.

She loves to play in puddles and mud, and is happy to go for walks in the rain. She is very playful and seems to be in constant motion.

She also likes to lie in the sun.

In constant need of touch and attention, she can damage the house when her caretaker is at home but does not give her as much attention as she would like.

She is very stubborn and undisciplined, does not like training classes, complaints and weeps constantly when in class.

Sensitive to cigarette smoke, she sneezes and walks away whenever someone smokes.

She is scared of car engine noises.

Loves chocolate, Coca-Cola and bread.

Eats everything she finds on the street, even indigestible things.

Prescription:  Argentum nitricum 30CH

Follow-ups

A couple of months later, as no significant impact was observed, a second remedy was given.

Prescription: Ignatia amara 30CH, with no satisfactory results either.

In September 1999 a third remedy was prescribed: Viola tricolor 12CH

One month later, her skin looked fine and all the itching and eruptions were gone.

Damca's Follow ups:  

Between October of 1999 and February of 2005, Damca had to take her remedy, Viola tricolor, only rarely, whenever her skin seemed to start getting irritated or when her behavior seemed to become too edgy.

Over the years, Viola tricolor was given in 12CH, LM2 and LM3 dilutions.

In February 2005, the dog came to the consultation with a new symptom: a red mole, 2cm in diameter in the right armpit, which, from the biopsy, turned out to be a small mast cell tumor.

The mole disappeared after one week of daily doses of Viola tricolor 12CH.

In April 2006, Damca came for a consultation for her obsessive food related behavior: she would beg for food continuously, complaining, and crying endlessly when not satisfied.

This time another Viola came up. 

Prescription: Viola odorata 30 CH

She never had any skin issues again, except for once, in 2007, when a new baby came into the family so she was not “the only child” at home anymore. She then developed an acute skin reaction that calmed down and went away taking Viola odorata for several days.

Damca died in April 2012 at the age of fourteen, of old age. She had some kidney issues and walking difficulties when she died. She was put to sleep on her caretaker's decision, when she seemed to be in too much pain and discomfort, complaining and crying a lot.

Discussion and conclusion

Damca  had a full and happy life in spite of her difficult character and fragile immune system. She had various health issues right from the start but it seemed that whenever a symptom pointed its head, a dose of one of the Violas would trigger some healing mechanism that always lead to a long period of a balanced state. She would come for follow ups every month at first, then every year for a couple of years, after her first Viola treatment. In her later years, she would  come rarely, only when a new issue would arise, get her Viola treatment and disappear for a couple of years again.

Both, Viola tricolor and Viola odorata helped her rebalance herself in different periods of her life. Both Violas are characterized by restlessness, impatience and stubbornness leading towards disobedience.

Viola tricolor is prone to skin problems combined with urinary problems at a young age just as Damca had as a puppy. It is also a remedy that tends to have “ailments from suppressed eruptions” (Radar Keynotes) well reflected by Damca's recurrent digestive problems that seemed to be triggered by the antibiotics she received freely for her skin condition before coming for homeopathy. 

Viola odorata presents the unique symptom of “inclination to weep, involuntary, when anything is refused” (Radar Keynotes) that Damca showed clearly in her adult years. This characteristic symptom, along with the general symptom of “cancerous affections” (Radar Keynotes), is what led to switching her from Viola tricolor to Viola odorata.

In Michal Yakir's “Homeopathic Plant Remedies” book, both Violas are placed in the childhood row of the 5th column. Both are described as suited to sensitive and emotional patients that tend to complain and weep easily when they feel deprived or frustrated. They are stubborn and disobedient, just like their  multiple skin symptoms.

Which of the Violas was Damca's constitutional remedy? Difficult question to answer since she seemed to have thrived on both remedies. The only obvious conclusion we can draw based on Damca's life is that she was a Viola dog!

Photos:
Wikimedia Commons: Female dalmatian; Shipdude
Viola tricolor Stiefmütterchen Heartsease; Jürgen Weiland