Annual Advanced Meeting in Veterinary Homeopathy
Photo taken of a wild stallion in the Salt River near the ranch, curtesy of Jan Facinelli, DVM.
The PIVH Annual Advanced Meeting in Veterinary Homeopathy 2026
Wednesday, February 18th – Sunday, February 22nd, 2026
Conference Theme: Learning from Unusual Cases
Registration Now Open for our 2026 Meeting!
In this coming year’s conference, our meeting’s theme ‘Learning From Unusual Cases’ broadens our perspective in our clinical case work. This can apply to learning new aspects of familiar remedies, deepening our understanding of less frequently used remedies in our arsenal, or observing unusual symptoms or “strange, rare, peculiar” (SRP’s) – all which enlarge our view of what particular remedies are capable of addressing. Several talks this year will also include delving into the realm AI, demonstrating the possible considerations of how it can intersect in our case work. We will draw from our own cases or from the literature. The focus will be on cured clinical cases, but may also present theory or discussion from our historical masters.
Registration will open in fall of 2025 — check back for speaker topics and registration link as they come available! As always, presentations will vary from theory, materia medica and repertory study, to exciting cured clinical cases.
This year we will continue our traditional three and a half day main conference format from Thursday February 19th through Sunday February 22nd, with the popular extended lunch breaks for relaxation and recreation (hiking, swimming, etc.). We invite you to attend our additional ‘Optional Day’ on Wednesday February 18th to start off the conference, beginning with a day of interactive study and discussion moderated by Richard Pitcairn, DVM, PhD.
The Annual Meeting will provide you with a minimum of 15 hours of CE through the AHVMA, an AVMA affiliate organization.
The Annual Meeting is routinely held in February at the Saguaro Lake Ranch in the mountains outside of Phoenix, AZ (13020 Bush Highway, Mesa, AZ, 85215). This beautiful location provides an excellent opportunity for focused study, catching up with friends and classmates, relaxation, hiking, swimming, and connecting with other veterinary homeopaths in the tranquil atmosphere of the Saguaro Lake Ranch. If desired, there is also the option of staying off-site and just attending the meeting and elected meals.
All meals are included with lodging and are served in a shared dining style, providing exceptional fare and a health conscious retreat to rejuvenate both body and mind. The menu is predominantly a vegan menu to bring a focus on healthy, environmentally sensitive, and compassionate foods. Please fill in the comment box on the registration form for any dietary requests you might have such as food allergies or any non-vegan requests.
While there is no specific shuttle service from the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport to Saguaro Lake Ranch, there are a variety of transport options available. The ranch is outside of Phoenix proper, about a 30-40 minute drive (32 miles). Most attendees prefer not to rent a car, and ride-share to and from the airport. We will arrange coordinating attendees wanting to share ride lifts from the airport, primarily using George’s Transportation (602-509-6669, by appointment only), or other services such as Uber or Link.
2026 Meeting Content: Presentation Topics & Abstracts
There will be a minimum of 15 CE hours of presentations, including lectures by Richard Pitcairn and our colleagues and PIVH graduates from around the world. Preview the speakers, presentation topics, and abstracts below:
AI and Homeopathy
AI is a significant change in our technology. It is blossoming and appearing in many places — businesses, software, websites, and now even in homeopathic software. What is AI? Why is there so much interest in it? What effect will it have in our homeopathic work? Is it something we will use? Will it replace homeopathic or even medical practitioners? We will explore this topic.
— Richard Pitcairn, DVM, PhD
Nerve-Racking Tails: Homeopathic Treatment of Challenging Neurological Patients
Neurological cases often confront us with great challenges. The nervous system is one of the most complex and least accessible systems in the body. It is largely hidden from view, heavily sensation-based, and often difficult to assess with certainty — making both diagnosis and prognosis particularly difficult. In this presentation, I invite you to join me on a journey through a selection of neurological conditions treated homeopathically. We will explore several cases, including Canine Distemper, as well as chronic neurological conditions like Epilepsy — in both dogs and cats. In these cases, we will follow the steps of diagnosis, homeopathic treatment and prognosis.
— Lena Gdalevich, DVM
Whispers from the past: What 19th century cases can teach us about the language of the disease.
I will be reopening three cases from 1860’s to understand what was considered “Strange, Rare, and Peculiar” and the “mind behind the medicine” of the time. In these historical bovine and equine cases – each patient made a complete and dramatic recovery from a carefully chosen homeopathic medicine, demonstrating the pivotal role homeopathy played in alleviating their symptoms. On first glance, the curative remedies were not the obvious remedies one might quickly reach for. We will determine how each homeopath viewed the patient and understood the remedy to find the curative prescription. These are the stories of resilience – a reminder that even in great weakness or life-threatening situations, healing can find its way!
— Ila Tewari, DVM, CVH
Canine Hysteria Treated with a Surprising Remedy
Calcarea carbonica is not known for hysterical out-of-control behaviors. But by taking a thorough case, establishing a detailed timeline, deriving a comprehensive symptom list, and repertorizing, the patient’s curative remedy was discovered. This 4 month-old chocolate Labrador retriever puppy was able to moderate her behavior and integrate successfully into her new home. Examining materia medica, the deeper emotional intensity of Calcarea is explored.
— Wendy Jensen, DVM, CVH
Understanding Homeopathic Aggravations
We may see, in some cases, that the remedy used was curative but what followed its immediate use was some of the pathological conditions becoming much worse for a time. Kent calls this “aggravation of the ultimates.” Why does this happen? Why not just a quick recovery without suffering as Hahnemann tells us will happen with homeopathic treatment? We will draw from both Kent and Hahnemann in attempting to understand this on a deeper level, including reviewing cured cases.
— Richard Pitcairn, DVM, PhD
A Review of Bar-c with Case Focus on Physical and Emotional Manifestation of Dwarfism
We will explore the indications for Bar-c, an important anti-miasmatic and developmental remedy. Stunted development or dwarfism in particular will be explored. Dwarfism can present as the classic small physical stature of a patient, i.e. the runt of the litter. Dwarfism can also present as stunted emotional development of the patient, i.e. poor social skills, noise phobias, delayed learning, etc. This presentation compares the clinical picture of three patients where the keynote to their curative remedy, Bar-c, was dwarfism. It also reminds us that patients may not manifest the emotional picture of the remedy because their mental/emotional status has not been affected and that the practitioner should not be misled when repertorizing the patient and studying the Materia Medica.
— Leslie Mcintyre, DVM, DACVIM, CVA, TCVM, CAC, CCRT, PICVH
Why Does Disease Happen?
As we observe, not everyone becomes sick even in epidemics. Hahnemann tells us the critical factor is susceptibility. What is this? How does it develop? Hahnemann does not go into this any further, but what has been learned in psychology answers many of these questions. We will look at the importance of the mind in making us susceptible.
— Richard Pitcairn, DVM, PhD
Exploring Muriatic Acid: JOEY, a cat with oral/facial pain.
Muriatic acid is an anti-miasmatic remedy, proven and presented by Hahnemann in THE CHRONIC DISEASES. We propose it may be underused and underappreciated in veterinary homeopathic practice. In this talk, we will explore this remedy in repertory and materia medica study, and discuss the case of Joey, a cat with feline-oral-facial-pain-syndrome (FOPS) type symptoms.
— Andrea Tasi, VMD
The Sky’s the Limit: Homeopathic Cure of a Case of Persisting Fever of 9 Months Duration in a Dog
Full topic summary coming soon: Homeopathic cure of a persisting fever in a dog that defied allopathic diagnosis and intervention for 9 months duration. Talk will explore effective integration of Chat GPT in hectic clinical practice.
— Michel Gutierrez Castillo, DVM
“Rowan” and the Traveling Foxtail
Foxtails are a common problem for dogs in Sonoma County. They can end up in ear canals, paws, the nasal passages and the vagina, resulting in discomfort and secondary bacterial infections. In some cases, foxtails can migrate deep into the tissue and work their way into the chest. A civil war story provided the clue to the use of a remedy that cleared a foxtail from a dog who presented with recurrent pneumothorax and dyspnea.
— Stephanie Chalmers, DVM, DACVD, CVH
Purebred Dogs with Inherited Miasms and Vaccinosis
The health of our modern day purebred and stray dogs is often less than perfect. From a homeopathic perspective, these dogs are often born with one or more inherited miasms (psora/sycosis/syphilis) which often sets them up for health challenges within their first year of life. These inherited miasms help us understand why only a portion of vaccinated dogs manifest vaccinosis due to their inborn susceptibility. With purebred breeding practices, generationally this inherited miasmatic burden can progressively escalate. Homeopathy has the ability to address these inherited as well as acquired (vaccination) miasms to return these animals to an excellent state of health. We will explore cases of rhinitis, gastroenteritis, bronchitis, panosteitis, bursitis, demodex, cystitis and more with which young canine patients were burdened and to which inherited miasms made them susceptible.
— Leslie Mcintyre, DVM, DACVIM, CVA, TCVM, CAC, CCRT, PICVH
Each year the conference features lectures by Dr. Richard Pitcairn, PIVH faculty, and a selection of guest speakers. Topics vary from year to year but include theory, case study, and practice management specific to the homeopathic veterinary practice.