Strengthening the cardiovascular system, lowering blood pressure, blood vessel dilation, nutritive, antioxidant

Fresh or dried berries, tinctures, teas, decoctions

Hawthorn dilates the blood vessels of the heart and brain, allowing increased circulation and nutrient transport throughout the body. This helps the body increase blood flow by decreasing blood pressure.

Hawthorn also scavenges free radical molecules in the blood stream, allowing for increased blood oxygen levels.

Hawthorn can help steady and strengthen an erratic heartbeat.

Animals that experience high stress to the heart muscle, such as working dogs or performance horses, may benefit from the preventative effects of daily hawthorn supplementation in preventing myocardial damage.

Hawthorn may also be useful for strengthening the heart muscle in older animals with chronic heart problems or animals with cardiac anomalies due to infections or heartworm.

Hawthorn also benefits the kidneys by improving blood circulation through the renal arteries and smaller blood vessels.

Ripe berries can be picked and fed as treats, most animals like them since they taste good.

Alternatively, the berries can be dried on a sheet of paper and ground with a mortar and pestle into a coarse powder. Add the powder at a dose of 1 teaspoon per pound of food fed each day.

• Goldenseal should not be used in pregnant animals.
• Do not use goldenseal in animals that are hypoglycemic.
• Goldenseal may cause hypertension.
• Long-term use of goldenseal may overstimulate the liver and trigger excessive bile production, leading to vomiting. This is especially true in cats.
• Goldenseal should not be used internally continuously for more than seven days without a break.

Wulff-Tilford, Mary, and Gregory L. Tilford. All You Ever Wanted to Know About Herbs for Pets. Irvine, CA: BowTie, 1999. Print.

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