The Living Equine
Materia Medica
understanding plants as medicine
Discover the unique properties, energetics, actions, traditional and modern uses, and safety of medicinal herbs, and learn how each plant can be used to support the individual horse.
No acupuncture needles required.
Know The Plant, Understand the Medicine
Go Beyond "Herbs For"...
Most horse owners encounter herbs as ingredients in supplements, pre-made blends, or lists of “herbs for ulcers,” “herbs for anxiety,” or “herbs for inflammation.”
But that doesn’t teach you how to actually understand the plants you’re using.
Medicinal herbs have their own properties, actions, energetics, affinities, traditional uses, and modern applications. And the same herb isn’t necessarily the right choice for every horse simply because they share the same symptom or diagnosis.
Living Equine Materia Medica takes you beyond memorizing what an herb is “good for” and teaches you to understand the plant itself, so you can begin to recognize why you might choose one herb over another and how that choice relates to the individual horse in front of you.
See The Individual Horse, Not Just The Condition
Bring all of these pieces together so you can understand why two horses with the same problem may not need the same herbal support.
What You Learn
Get To Know The Plants
Explore individual medicinal herbs in depth, including the parts used, key constituents, traditional uses, and what modern research can tell us about their actions.
Understand Herbal Energetics
Learn how qualities such as warming, cooling, drying, moistening, stimulating, and calming help us understand how an herb may interact with the individual horse.
Learn What Herbs Do
Move beyond lists of conditions and learn the actions of medicinal plants, their affinities for different tissues and body systems, and why those actions matter when choosing an herb.
Connect Traditional Knowledge with Modern Science
Explore how herbs have been understood and used historically alongside what we now know about their phytochemistry and physiological effects.
Learn Preparation and Administration
Understand the different ways herbs can be prepared and given, and how preparation can influence what you’re actually getting from the plant.
Use Herbs Thoughtfully and Safely
Learn important considerations including dosing, contraindications, interactions, duration of use, sourcing, and quality.
Meet Your Practitioner
Rebecca Douglass, DAC, LAC, Dipl. NCBAHM has spent more than 23 years working at the intersection of acupuncture, integrative medicine, and equine health.
Her philosophy is at the heart of this masterclass: teaching you how to thoughtfully combine the therapeutic qualities of essential oils with the energetic actions of acupuncture points to create treatments with greater intention and specificity. In this masterclass, she brings that knowledge together to teach you how to choose an oil, choose an acupoint, and intentionally pair the two based on what you want to support in your horse.
Dr. Rebecca
Frequently Asked Question
What Can I Expect Each Week?
Each week, you’ll spend time getting to know a new medicinal plant in depth, exploring it from both traditional and modern perspectives.
You’ll learn the energetics, actions and affinities, key constituents, traditional and modern uses, preparation and administration, dosing, safety, and important contraindications.
But you won’t just learn about the herbs. You’ll begin developing a relationship with the plants themselves through observation, sensory exploration, and hands-on experience, while learning to recognize the qualities that make each plant distinct.
Week by week, you’ll build your own Living Equine Materia Medica, creating a resource you can continue to use, expand, and deepen long after the course is complete.
Do I Need Previous Experience With Herbal Medicine
No previous experience with herbal medicine is required.
Living Equine Materia Medica is designed to give you the foundation you need to begin understanding medicinal plants from the ground up.
If you already have experience with herbs, the course will help you deepen that knowledge by exploring plant energetics, actions, affinities, traditional uses, modern research, preparation, safety, and how these pieces come together when working with horses.
How Can I Use What I Learn With My Own Horse?
You’ll be able to bring what you learn directly into the everyday care of your own horses. You’ll have a better understanding of the herbs you may already be using, know what to look for when choosing herbal products, and begin making more informed decisions about which plants may be appropriate for your individual horse.
You’ll also learn simple ways to prepare and use individual herbs, giving you more options for supporting your horse’s everyday health and well-being while knowing when an herb may not be appropriate or when professional care is needed.