Herbal Vet Track at the IHS

The IHS partners with the VBMA (Veterinary Botanical Medicine Association) to develop this program and CEUs. Vet Track classes, just like our other Intensives, offer participants the opportunity to delve deeper into subjects of particular interest and to work more closely with individual teachers.  Classes are typically 3-4 hours in length and are $35 each when you register for the Symposium.

CEUs for Veterinarians

There is an additional fee of $40 to secure CEU credits for alternative therapies. A certificate of attendance from VBMA will be given to participants who choose this option. To do so, simply check the box for Veterinarian Track VBMA Certificate under Additional Options when you register for the Symposium. Note that everyone is welcome to attend any Vet Track classes whether or not they are practitioners.

The Veterinary Botanical Medicine Association

The VBMA is a group of veterinarians and herbalists dedicated to developing responsible herbal practice by encouraging research and education, strengthening industry relations, keeping herbal tradition alive as a valid information source, and increasing professional acceptance of herbal medicine for animals. Susan Wynn founded the VBMA in 2002. Learn more about VBMA.

History Behind the IHS Vet Track

Learning from elders is at the heart of the herbal tradition and the heart of the Symposium as well. One of the most heartfelt herbal elders of the Symposium is Juliette de Bairacli Levy, author of so many influential herbal books, inspired by her love of animals and life as an herbalist specializing in holistic veterinary medicine.

Rosemary Gladstar’s Story of Her Mentor’s Journey to the IHS

“I brought Juliette to, I believe, the second IHS. It’s quite the story. Juliette was living on the Greek isle of Kythera at the time, in a small stone cottage just a stone’s throw from the Aegean Sea. She hadn’t been to the US since 1958, and I really wanted to bring her so people could meet this amazing woman, and so she could see the profound influence she had on generations of herbalists. She really had no idea at the time of how her work had touched so many lives.

I had flown over to visit her a couple of times and asked her if she would come to the next IHS. She was quite happy to be invited, so I returned home and began advertising in earnest. Everyone was so excited she was coming — this woman, whose books they had been reading and who had so inspired their herbal journey! We had the biggest turnout ever that year (over 900 people — you must remember this was the early 1990s). Juliette had told me she would prefer to arrange her own ticket, but as the weeks drew close for the IHS and there was still no news from Juliette I began to worry. There was no Internet or emailing back then, and if there were, Juliette wouldn’t have had it anyway. She didn’t even have a phone. I had to call a person in the nearest town to drive out to get Juliette and bring her to the nearest phone to call me. When I finally reached her, she calmly informed me she had decided not to come, but that I wasn’t to worry because she had made tapes that I could play!

‘Juliette,’ I said, ‘pack your bags. I’m coming to get you!’ And that’s exactly what I did. I caught a plane that night, flew to Greece and the adventure began! As it turned out her passport and papers weren’t in order; we found this out as we were ready to board the plane to the US. I had to spend a few days in Athens getting an expedited passport for her, and we finally made it back to the US just two days before the conference began! But it was all worth it. People got to meet an extraordinary woman. And even more importantly, Juliette was able to see how deeply and profoundly her work had touched others.”