Love The Natural Benefits of Hawthorn for Animals

Facts About The Hawthorn Plant

Hawthorn (Crataegus species) is a thorny shrub that's part of the rose family. It commonly grows throughout Europe, western Asia and northern Africa. Hawthorn produces white flowers (usually late Spring), which are then followed by dark red fruit (often late Summer).

Hawthorn has been used in herbal medicine for centuries - mainly for digestion, and for the health of the heart.

How Can Hawthorn Help Your Animal?

There's been several medical research studies looking whether hawthorn has any effect on cardiac health for humans. These have demonstrated that hawthorn does have a beneficial effect when it's used on a long-term basis. This has included improving symptoms and a reduction in the conventional medication being used.

Studies looking at the effectiveness of hawthorn in veterinary medicine are more scarce, although it's also used for cardiac health in animals too.

Obviously as can be the case with any health condition, heart related ailments should always be treated very seriously, and so hawthorn should only be used for your animal with the consent/approval of your Veterinary Surgeon.

It's rare for there to be any side effects from the use of hawthorn, however, is not impossible as is the case with any medicine (conventional or natural!).

How To Use Hawthorn With Your Animal

• The berries can be fed as they are, or they can be picked, dried and then ground into a coarse powder and added to the animal's feed.
• Alternatively, a tea can be made using the hawthorn and added to the feed.
• It can also be found in good animal feed stores as a tincture.
• Hawthorn's also found in homeopathy.

Research, Articles and Video's on Hawthorn and Animals

• Research - Fu, Jh., Zheng, Yq., Li, P. et al. Hawthorn leaves flavonoids decreases inflammation related to acute myocardial ischemia/reperfusion in anesthetized dogs. Chin. J. Integr. Med. 19, 582–588 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-012-1250-4
• Article - Hawthorn Herb Improves Cardiac Function in Older Dogs (Gregory L Tilford) - Whole Dog Journal

Please remember that no complementary therapy treatment can replace medical advice from a qualified physician - and professional advice should always be sought if you (or your animal) are at all unwell before using any product/supplements.

You can get more information on many complementary therapies for animals here at Taranet. Take a look at the sitemap here for a list.

About The Author
This article has been extensively researched and written by Suzanne Harris. Who is also the designer and developer of this site. A lifelong animal lover with a passion for ensuring animals can access complementary therapies for the benefit of their health and wellbeing.