RESUMO
Despite being of debatable efficacy, alternative medicines are in regular use on both organic and conventional dairy farms as part of a strategy for limiting the on-farm use of antibiotics. The study presented here examined French dairy farmers' understanding of and experiences with these medicines, focusing on homeopathy, aromatherapy and phytotherapy. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach combining animal science and sociology, we considered how dairy farmers' use of alternative medicines fits into a holistic approach to herd health management, on the one hand, and into farmers' networks of professional relationships, on the other. Our findings show that farmers are interested in alternative medicines for reasons that are at once technical, ethical, and economic. In the absence of local veterinarians specializing in homeopathy and aromatherapy, farmers enroll in short-term training courses to learn how to use these medicines. Alternative medicines are not a substitute for conventional medicine for these farmers; rather, they constitute one part of a holistic approach to herd health that combines preventive measures with a variety of curative treatments, and which is grounded in close attention to the animals' state of health. Farmers make use of guidelines for observing livestock that are central to the veterinary alternative medicine approach. Interestingly, women farmers appear to play an important role in introducing these practices into the management of the farm operation. Finally, farmers' interest in alternative medicines is indicative of their broader expectations for advice and support in moving toward the integrated management of livestock health, a key element of the agroecological transition. Recognizing these expectations offers useful insights for rethinking the role of veterinarians in dairy farming.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Veterinary remedies are intended to support animals in their recovery from diseases. Treatment outcome depends not only on the general effectiveness of the remedies themselves, but also on other prerequisites. This is true for antibiotics, but even more so for treatments with homeopathic products which are characterised by their individualised approach. While the effectiveness of homeopathy has been addressed in various clinical control trials, the practical conditions under which homeopathic products are used on dairy farms have not yet been investigated. This study provides an initial insight into the existing prerequisites on dairy farms for the use of homeopathy (i.e. the consideration of homeopathic principles) and on homeopathic treatment procedures (including anamnesis, clinical examination, diagnosis, selection of a remedy, follow-up checks, and documentation) on 64 dairy farms in France, Germany and Spain. The use of homeopathy was assessed via a standardised questionnaire during face-to-face interviews. RESULTS: The study revealed that homeopathic treatment procedures were applied very heterogeneously and differed considerably between farms and countries. Farmers also use human products without veterinary prescription as well as other prohibited substances. CONCLUSIONS: The subjective treatment approach using the farmers' own criteria, together with their neglecting to check the outcome of the treatment and the lack of appropriate documentation is presumed to substantially reduce the potential for a successful recovery of the animals from diseases. There is, thus, a need to verify the effectiveness of homeopathic treatments in farm practices based on a lege artis treatment procedure and homeopathic principles which can be achieved by the regular monitoring of treatment outcomes and the prevailing rate of the disease at herd level. Furthermore, there is a potential risk to food safety due to the use of non-veterinary drugs without veterinary prescription and the use of other prohibited substances.
