Re: Legal Remedies and Herbs

[CMKSAGEHIL@aol.com]

To further add to what Bob Morris stated, one reason that the veterinary
committee has refrained from making lists is because there are so many
possibly illegal substances that to attempt to list them would be futile.
Rather than have people take the attitude that "if it isn't on the list it is
ok" the committee has simply stood behind the rule.

Regarding "natural" products:  Remember that the majority of our drugs come
from "natural" plant or animal sources to begin with, and those that don't
come from such sources directly are often still the same chemical compounds
found in the plants and merely manufactured elsewhere, or derivatives of what
was found in the natural source.  The plant sources often contain a range of
similar compounds rather than just one purified compound.  Many of these
compounds still "test" regardless of the "natural-ness" of the source--good
example is yucca, which contains salicylates, which are essentially aspirin.
And regardless of our ability or inability to "test", if  these compounds,
natural or otherwise, can cause any sort of change in the horse so that he is
not competing on his natural ability of the moment, then they are not allowed.
Pretty simple.

Heidi